Falling in Love With a German, AKA MasterMind
by KittyoftheNight
Summary: A young girl with mysterious powers and a mysterious past, gets caught up between Weiss and Schwartz. Question is, can she tell which side is which? Or will a quickly blooming attatchment with a certain German stop her in her tracks? SchuldigxOC
1. Friend

**Redo**: Knight Hunters Weiss Kreuz

**CHAPTER 1**

**Friend**

_What am I...?_

_Who am I...? What makes me..me...?_

_Why am I so..different...?_

_What sets me apart from everyone else...?_

_What exactly is it,...that makes us.. us...?_

She continued to ask herself this...over...and over...and over again.

_What exactly am I? Why did I live...while they died? Why...why...? Why can't I just live a normal life...a normal life...like everyone else? But then again...what is normal anyways? For me...nothing's normal...and nothing ever will be..._

She'd been asking herself this stuff for the past 3 months...and yet…still no answers seem to come to her. Who is she? Well...even she doesn't know the answer to that one anymore. Actually, right now...all that she knew was that she was in a hospital bed. No family, no friends, no nothing. Nothing at all...nothing except herself and her own tormenting thoughts and memories...or at least what memories she had left anyway.

Outside, the sounds of the busy city could be heard. The bellowing horns, the shouting people, and the sound of a bell, signaling for school to start as all the students run inside it for a day of learning.

She'd lost all joy in listening to those things...the things in which give so many others so much joy. Although, she didn't really see the point in them anymore. There was really no reason for her to.

T

In another room of the hospital, a man sighed heavily as he ran his thumb over a sleeping girl's delicate hand, lightly moving it back and forth.

"Please wake up Aya...I miss you..." he said to his little sister as he watched her just laying there, in her motionless state.

_She's been like this for years now_ he thought to himself.

"Well...I'd better get going. The others have probably broken something by now..." he spoke softly to her.

With that, he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. As he started to leave, he noticed a door open, just a few rooms down. Therefore, he walked over to it, spotting a young girl laying in a bed. She appeared to be a few years younger than himself. The name on the door says Elizabeth Mitsua.

_Hm...her room…it's so empty... doesn't she get any visitors?_

"Oh, hello there, how are you today?" a voice called, startling him a bit, I might add.

He turned around to find a young woman standing there dressed in a nurse's uniform, a smile on her face as she greeted him.

"Hm...? Oh...uh...I'm fine, thank you," he said.

"So...I see you've noticed our miracle patient."

"Miracle patient?" he asked, slightly confused.

"Yes...you see Elizabeth here...well...let's just say she lived through something that she shouldn't have been able to," she said.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, her house caught fire and a little after, it just...exploded somehow... She was caught right in the middle of it. She's lucky that she lived. When she was brought in she had suffered incredible burns to her body," she explained.

"Well...where's her family? I mean...I would think that someone would at least care enough to visit her and make sure that she's okay. It doesn't seem as though she's had any visitors at all," he questioned with a bit of curiosity.

"That's just it...the poor thing...she...she lost everything in that accident. Her parents...even her little sister...that was the only family she had. Her parents were both an only child, her grandparents are dead, and there are no family friends either. What's even sadder is that there wasn't hardly even anybody at their funeral, plus... she never even got to go to her family's funeral. She's been cooped up in here for 3 months now. Her burns are gone shockingly... but I'm afraid that she's still in pain and it's pain on the inside too..."she told him.

As she told him this, he felt something crack on the inside, also a feeling of familiarity to a degree as well.

_She shouldn't have to go through something like this._

"Doesn't she ever get any visitors though?" he asked.

"No, unfortunately not. She never had a single one. In fact," she paused for a moment, looking up at him, "you're the first person to actually even notice her. Everyone else, they just walk right by without a single thought to it. You see nobody will even go near her, their excuse is that they are busy or they don't have the time or they just don't want to. I'm the only one that even talks to her... or at least I try to. She won't even talk anymore and when she does it's only a few words if that," she said with a sigh.

_No one even pays her any attention…_

"She's completely closed herself off from the world. She just let herself go and I'm lucky if I can even get her to eat anything at all. She…she just... lays there...she lays there on her bed all day long. She hasn't even been outside once the whole time that she's been here. Although... she does draw...I...I think...I think it's her escape, her way of relieving herself from the pain that she feels," she said, her eyes staring up at him.

She then hesitated for a moment before speaking again.

"You…come here quite often, don't you?" she asked carefully.

"Yes, I do. I come here to visit my sister," he told her.

A spark of realization seemed to hit her when he told her this.

"Ms. Aya Fujimiya correct?" she asked in an attempt to answer her silent question.

"Yes, that's her."

"She's lucky you know... to have a brother like you," she said with a smile.

"Thank you..." he said quietly, trying to put on a small smile of his own.

It was hard for him to smile anymore after everything that's happened to him and his little sister Aya. Most of the time, he'd have to force a smile, just to seem polite. It's not his fault that he didn't have anything to smile for anymore.

"Can I...ask you something?" she spoke slowly.

"What would that be?" he asked her.

"Well, since you come here so often I thought maybe, just maybe if you got the chance... you could visit Elizabeth. Maybe talk to her a little. Maybe, try to be her friend," she said, almost scared to ask as if she would be told no.

He was shocked, really he was. Nobody had ever asked him something like that before.

"You see, the reason why I asked you this is because...I'm afraid…that if things keep going the way that they are now...if they continue to progress...I'm afraid that she may very well die," she told him, her voice full of sadness. "So please... will you try and help her please... I don't want to see her end that way, not when she still has her whole life ahead of her," she pleaded to him.

"Alright, I'll try my best to help if I can."

"Thank you, thank you so much," she said, almost in tears now.

"Water?" came a low voice from the room.

When he turned, he saw that the girl hadn't even moved. She still just laid there staring out the window.

"Of course dear. Well, thank you Mr. Fujimiya," the nurse said as she grabbed Elizabeth's cup, leaving him in the hallway.

"Hello?" called the voice once again, still looking out the window.

"Hello," he answered as he stepped into the room.

He just stood there, standing over her slightly as he watched those distant, empty eyes of hers turn toward him.

"You're...not afraid of me..."she said with the slightest smile on her face.

"No, why would I be?" I asked in confusion.

"Everyone else…they're… afraid of me…just like they always have been," she said, the last part coming out in a whisper, though he still heard it.

He pulled a chair up alongside her bed and sat down so that he could talk. He saw her sketchbook laying there on the bed beside her and it was flipped open to a page where she had drawn something.

"Your sketch book, might I see it?" he asked kindly, trying to be nice to her.

She looked at him for a moment as though thinking it over. She then picked it up, bringing it toward herself before carefully handing it to him, holding it out for him to take.

"Mm," she said with a nod, causing him to chuckle quietly.

"Thank you," he said as he took it from her wary hand and began to look through it.

What he saw amazed him, he had never something so well drawn out, it was just amazing.

"They're amazing. You're a wonderful artist," he told her and it was the truth, she was a very good artist.

Then, she stopped him by placing her hand on top of his. He looked up at her questioningly as she took his hand and turned the pages toward the back. What he saw next was unbelievable in his mind. It was a rose, a red rose. It was drawn so delicately, so precise, so perfectly, so much time and effort resulting in something so beautiful. He looked back up at her and she smiled at him, she actually smiled a genuine smile.

"It's beautiful," he said to her in a soft, gentle voice.

"It...reminds… me...of...you..."she said in such a low, soft, gentle voice.

He was shocked when she said it reminded her of him.

"I...want…you...to…have…it, "she said slowly.

He couldn't believe what she was saying. She had put so much time and effort into making something so beautiful and she was giving it to him, someone she just met, someone she didn't even know.

"What?" he asked in confused.

"I…want...you...to... have…it, "she said once more with a smile upon her face. "It's... my…favorite. My favorite flower," she told him.

"Heh. you know what?"

"What?" she whispered.

"It's actually mine too," he told her and honestly it was, he loved roses, they were so beautiful.

"We have...something…in... common," she said.

"So we do," he agreed, a small smile gracing his lips.

He paused for a moment and decided on telling her something else.

"You know Elizabeth, I actually work as a florist and so I'm actually around flowers all the time."

"Hm…now…that you... mention…it...you do…kind of...smell like flowers," she admitted with a little laugh, then starting to sniff him.

"HEY!" he let out a startled yelp.

"You smell like...roses…begonias...jasmine...and...lilacs," she said with a laugh, causing him to let out a small laugh of his own.

"Hm…I have an idea, how about I take you to the flower shop once you're out of here?" he asked her, already knowing the answer.

"R-really? You would…really…do that for me?" she asked, evident excitement in her voice.

He nodded his head, carefully selecting my next words.

"Of course I would, I mean I am your friend now, right?"

"Friend?" she looked up at him for a moment, "I...never...had a...friend before..."she said now in deep thought once again.

"Yeah," he began, "a friend. I'll be your friend, someone that you can talk to, someone that will cheer you up when you're sad, someone who's there for you and has your back," he explained, trying to get her to understand.

"A friend? I-I'd like that…very much…um," she paused as though asking a silent question.

"Aya, my name is Aya," he told her, using the same name that he gave anyone else.

"Okay…I'd like that very much...Aya," and as she said this her eyes seemed to soften a bit, the color becoming a bit brighter and not as dull, she was starting to come around.

**Okay everyone, that's chapter 1 after rewriting it a bit. Please REVIEW or MESSAGE me letting me know what you think? No matter how short or simple it may be. I like knowing whether or not people actually like my stories. Also please check out my other stories for Final Fantasy 7 if you like Vincent and Chaos, Labyrinth for Jareth the Goblin King, Escaflowne for Folken, Sailor Moon for Tigers Eye (which I will likely end up redoing as well), Fullmetal Alchemist for Scar, Fruits Basket for Kyo, X-Men for Gambit, and Prince of Tennis for Kaidoh.**


	2. Frustrations and Isolations

**Chapter 2**

**Frustrations and Isolations**

"Huh?" he looked toward her, noticing as she stilled, "What? What is it?"

"….I know you're there…" she said quietly, her eyes trailing to the side of the room.

It was then that he noticed the nurse standing at the doorway watching us. He was actually surprised at himself, the fact that he had failed to notice the nurse's presence until now.

"Hehe…sorry. I hope I didn't interrupt anything?" the nurse said, hoping to excuse her interruption.

Elizabeth was about to say something, but Aya beat her to it.

"Huh.. Oh…no.. Um…I should probably get going anyways," Aya told them as he got up from his chair.

Elizabeth was a bit disappointed; she had hoped to talk to him a bit longer. She watched sadly as he stood up and placed his chair back where it belonged.

"Besides, I need to get back to work."

_Oh no, now I feel bad for keeping him so long. _She thought quietly.

"My friends are most likely wondering where I'm at," he said, now at the door.

_Come on say something before it's too late._

"Aya?" Elizabeth called, her voice hiding a bit of nervousness as she was unsure of herself.

"Hm?" he turned his head back to face her as she called out to him, his eyes locking onto hers.

_Come on say __**SOMETHING! **_She yelled at herself.

"Stay…safe…" that was all she could manage to say, so she just put a smile on, though small as it was at least she tried.

He gave a short laugh upon hearing this, before nodding his head.

"I will," he said, and with that, he was out the door.

She let out a deep sigh. Why couldn't she say something? She felt like such an idiot as she watched him disappear through the door, the feeling of loneliness slowly taking over again and consuming her.

"Congratulations!" came the sound of Ms. Saki's voice, startling Elizabeth as she said it. "I'm so happy for you," she exclaimed as she clapped her hands together.

Elizabeth gave the nurse a puzzled look, which apparently only caused her to laugh.

"Well, I'll go get your lunch now. Be right back," she announced as she too was out the door.

_What was that all about?_

Elizabeth sighed once more. Finally, someone wasn't scared of her. Although, she knew that she shouldn't get her hopes up. Heck, there was a chance that he might not even come back. Well, it was nice while it lasted.

"Aya…"she whispered quietly, her voice barely audible to her own self."Thank you."

T

Aya was now walking down the hall after leaving Elizabeth's room when he heard a female voice, causing him to turn around. It was Ms. Saki, the nurse.

"Mr. Fujimiya, thank you," she said, "You have no idea how happy you've made her," she cried, smiling at him.

"It was no problem. I'm glad I could help," he told her, once again trying, key word **TRYING** to leave the hospital, but she just **HAD** to say something else.

"Please come back and visit her again? It would mean a lot to her," that was all she said as she turned around and headed back down the hallway.

_I'll keep that in mind, but I can't make any promises._ He thought to himself and it was true.

Sometimes, he wasn't even able to visit his sister because of how busy he was, but he would still try if he could.

With that, he left the hospital, walking down the street among the people of the city and just weaving through the crowd. His destination was the flower shop as the sun beat down on his back. He had to shield his eyes from the sun as it continued to shine high in the sky, shining off of cars and buildings, creating a murderous glare to anyone that dared look.

_I can only imagine what Yohji's going to say. _He thought to himself with a sigh. _This is going to be __**REALLY**__ annoying._

He came closer to the shop, spotting it in the distance, girls crowding around the three guys that were there; his _friends_.

"Hey, Aya, where the **HECK **have you been!" came the voice of a man taller than himself, the man standing at a height of 6 feet, while Aya stood at a mere 5'10".

The man had light brown hair that came down to about his chin, accompanied by striking aqua green eyes. He also wore a pair of sunglasses on his head, with an apron tied around him. That was Yohji, the guy who was always flirting with the girls.

"Well, are you going to say something or just stand there all day long?" he asked in a cocky tone.

"I was at the hospital," Aya told him as he tried to get past Yohji, once again key word **TRIED**.

"Bologna. I'm not stupid you know."

_Right, of course you're not, you're just always in everyone's business. Mine especially._

"Then don't act stupid," Aya said curtly, pushing passed him into the shop.

"HEY! Dang it Aya!Stop doing that," Yohji said as he turned Aya around, yelling in his ear.

"Yohji," Aya said in a mostly monotone voice, venom lacing the edges. "Let go."

At that, he let go of Aya's shoulders and stepped back, his hand behind his head as he smiled nervously at him. One of the things that these guys have learned over the time that we've been together, is not to mess with Aya, and NOT touch him. Anymore, Aya really just didn't like physical contact. All that he really cared about is getting revenge for his sister and family. He knew that she wouldn't be happy knowing how cold he was at times now, but he couldn't help it, it kept him from getting hurt.

"Hehe…um…sorry Aya. I don't know what came over me…hehe."

Nervous as he was, he was still getting on Aya's nerves. Then again, a lot of people get on his nerves. He just try to deal with it the best that he could and ignore them if possible.

"Believe what you will, but keep your hands off of me," Aya told him in agitation, turning around, walking behind the counter as he grabbed his apron and put it on.

"But what took you so long? It never takes you that long any other time," he asked, picking up a large potted plant and carrying it across the room towards the front of the shop for Omi to deliver, the tone in his voice just slightly curious and neutral.

"I was talking to someone," Aya said absentmindedly as he grabbed a watering can and began to water some of the flowers.

"Who could you have possibly been talking to for **THAT** long? You've never talk that long to anybody."

Aya let out a deep sigh, telling Yohji silently that he was clearly annoyed.

_I know I'm going to regret this afterward._

"A girl," Aya said quietly, hoping that Yohji didn't hear him as he quickly went to the back.

"**A GIRL!**"

Aya let out a heavy sigh, running a hand through his fairly short hair, letting his bangs fall back into place afterward. He knew he would regret telling Yohji anything, and yet, he had still gone through with it.

"Okay, I'm leaving," Aya announced, taking off his apron with practiced ease.

He then walked out the front door and down the street, but not before grabbing a single red rose in his hand.

T

Back at the hospital, a man stood leaning over a sleeping girl dressed in a white gown as she slept in peace or at least as close to peace as could be possible for her. This stranger seemed to be invisible to all those around him as he leaned over closer, placing the index and middle fingers of his right hand to her forehead, peering into her mind. What he saw startled him for a moment, but then a smirk appeared on his face.

"Bingo," he said lowly with satisfaction.

With that, he removed his hand and stood straight, thinking about what he had just found.

"Crawford will undoubtedly be pleased with this new info," he said to himself, turning around as he crouched down on the windowsill. "I finally found you my little cat," he cooed, before jumping off the building.

_I finally found you. Heh, this was too easy. _He thought as he hopped from building to building until he spotted a familiar face with red hair._ Time to have a little fun._

In a flash, he was behind the man ready to taunt him.

"Well, well, well what do we have here?" he chuckled. "The little boy with anger problems?" he teased with a malicious smirk planted firmly upon his face.

The man in front of him visibly stiffened at the sound of his voice. This was the last person that he wanted to see.

"What do you want?" the red hair man asked, his voice full of hate.

"Just to tell you I just made a little visit to that little friend of yours. What was her name again? Oh yeah…I think it was Elizabeth or something or other," he said, carelessly inspecting his nails as he turned his hand this way and that way, hiding a smirk on his smooth face.

The man in front of him froze in his spot, eyes widened with fear.

"What did you do to her," he spat with rage, his fingers curling.

"Oh, I didn't do anything to her…_yet,_" he said smugly, which only increased at angering the young man in front of him.

"I'm warning you…stay away from her," his words were dripping with venom.

"And if I don't?" he said teasingly.

"I'll kill you," the man said in a serious voice.

T

One Month Later

Elizabeth sat on her bed, a faint smile gracing her lips as she looked out her window. It was a bright and sunny day today, perfect for her discharge from the hospital. What was nice was that she was going to go live with Ms. Saki for a short while, her nurse that had taken care of her for so long.

She breathed a quiet sigh as she thought about the month that had past and the visits from Aya. The following day after they had met, he had come back, a red rose in hand. It was so beautiful and she nearly cried when he gave it to her. No one had ever done something like that for her before.

From time to time, he would also bring her books to read on various subjects. Art, poetry, flowers, etc. It was truly nice and gave her some peace of mind.

Also, over the past month, she had acquired another visitor. She didn't know who he was, for she could never see anything but his shadow, though she knew it was a man. He was quiet and stayed in the shadows of the room, never really making a sound. Although, for some reason, his presence seemed to put her at ease. It was truly strange and for some reason, she wasn't scared. Also, she hadn't exactly told Aya or Ms. Saki about it, even though she knew that she should. She was afraid that they'd think she was nuts though, since no one else seemed to notice him. It's funny though, he's here almost every day, and yet for some reason he never sticks around when Aya's there. He seems to leave just before Aya gets there.

It was when she reached for the phone next to her bed that she caught sight of the shadowy figure, a faint smile forming on her face. She didn't say anything to him as she dialed the number, placing the phone against her ear as it rang.

"Aya…I'm being discharged," she said into the phone when she heard his voice on the other end.

She could almost see the smile on his face from the other side. She couldn't help but smile when he said that he'd come get her. He was going to take her to the flower shop, just as he had promised when they had first met. So with that, they said their goodbyes and hung up, leaving her to head down to the lobby and wait.

As she got up though, she nearly fell. Quickly, she caught herself, carefully reaching out and pressing the call button. It alerted Ms. Saki, calling her into the room. When she fell, she could have sworn that she heard the man in the shadows shift his weight as though getting ready to help her.

"Elizabeth, are you alright?" Ms. Saki asked, kneeling down beside her and helping her up the rest of the way.

"I'm fine…just a bit…light headed," she whispered, sitting back on the bed.

"That nice young man, Mr. Fujimiya, he's going to come and get you?" Ms. Saki asked, a knowing smile curling onto her face.

It made her blush when she saw it.

"Y-yes…he is," she said, looking elsewhere, her eyes catching the faint shine of another's in the shadows. "He's going to…take me to the flower shop…just like he promised," she said with a small smile.

"How sweet. Well, let me get you into a wheelchair, and then we'll get you downstairs," Ms. Saki said, leaving the room for a few minutes.

This allowed Elizabeth one last look around the room as she grabbed her sketchbook, thinking about how much time that she had spent in this room. In a way, she was slightly sad to be leaving, but she was also very happy. She had started to think that she would never leave, but now look at her. She was dressed in normal everyday clothes, leaving the hospital, and even meeting a friend.

_I think just maybe…I might have a chance at a normal life after all._

It was the sound of the wheelchair that brought her out of her thoughts, a small smile returning to her face.

"Time to go meet that man of yours," Ms. Saki said teasingly as she helped Elizabeth into the wheelchair.

"H-he's not…m-my man!" she stuttered in embarrassment.

Honestly, Elizabeth didn't understand why she did this to her. Her and Aya were only friends and that's it. He's a nice guy, but that's it, and that's all that she needed right now.

She took one more glance around the room as Ms. Saki wheeled her through the door. The man in the shadows was now gone, making her wonder if she'd ever see him again.

_Will he still watch over me after this? I'll miss his…_odd_ company._

**OK THAT'S THE END OF REDO CHAPTER 2. REMEMBER ENJOY, REVIEW AND MESSAGE. HAVE A NICE DAY. :) AND CHECK OUT MY OTHER STORIES LIKE X-MEN, FINAL FANTASY 7, FRUITS BASKET AND MORE!**


	3. Strange Run In's

**Knight Hunters Weiss Kreuz**

**Chapter 3**

**Strange Run In's**

Elizabeth smiled when they got down to the lobby. As expected, Aya was standing there waiting for her, a yellow rose in his hand. Yellow roses symbolize friendship.

"Hello, Aya…" she smiled, carefully standing up from the wheelchair.

She made my way over to him, her footing a little out of place, making her fall against him a bit as she hugged him. He seemed to stiffen for a split second, before returning the embrace and helping her stand properly.

"Are you sure that they said you could leave?" he teased faintly, making her cheeks heat up.

"Y-yes…I'm sure," she said quietly, shoving his arm playfully.

There was a ghost of a smile on his face as he nodded his head.

"Well, if you're sure, then let's get going. My car is just outside," he told her, carefully taking her hand to guide her.

She waved goodbye to Ms. Saki, knowing that she would see her later today anyway.

"So…are you happy to finally be out of the hospital?" Aya asked as he helped her into the car.

She nodded her head absentmindedly as she glanced around, subconsciously searching for something. She didn't exactly know why she was doing this, but she was. For some reason, it really didn't bother her though, not knowing what it was that she was looking for. She wanted to see the world again, the one in which she had been absent from for so long now.

"Aya?" she called quietly.

"Yes?" he let his eyes flicker toward her for a moment as he drove.

"After the flower shop…um…" she tried her best to get the words out, but stumbled over them instead.

"Yes?" he asked, urging her to continue.

She sighed quietly for a moment, looking out of the passenger side window.

"Would you mind…taking me somewhere?" she said slowly, turning her head toward him, a bit unsure of herself.

"Of course, where would you like to go?" he asked, his eyes glancing at her again, before turning back to the road in front of them.

"My parents grave," that was all that she told him as she turned to look back out the window, all speech falling silent.

When they got to the flower shop, she was amazed to say the least. There were so many flowers, it was hard to even begin to count them all. They were just so beautiful.

"They're beautiful," she said, walking around the shop.

There was such a large variety of flowers in this one little shop, it was hard to believe. They were so well taken care of too. This in itself made her smile a bit more.

"So, this is…what you do?" she spoke quietly, more so to herself than anything.

She really didn't expect to get an answer out of him, but surprisingly enough, he did answer her.

"It's not the most glamorous job out there for a guy, but…" he trailed off, looking around the room at all the flowers.

"No…it's a wonderful job Aya…you make people feel better," she told him, thinking back to when he first gave her a rose.

It had made her feel so alive, so much better than she had before. It put a bit of life back in her… It gave her back her determination. For that, she was eternally grateful to him.

After a while, a question popped into her head. There had been no customers and not once had she seen his friends that apparently worked here with him.

"Aya, how come no one else is here?" she asked quietly, her eyes trailing around the room.

He moved over to some of the other flowers, watering them a bit.

"Technically, the shop is closed today. I have no clue where the other 3 are," he informed her, checking on more of the flowers.

It was actually kind of calming to see him work. He took such good care of the flowers, making sure that they got plenty of water and light.

"Aya…can I help?" she asked timidly.

Her question was met with a simple smile and a nod of the head. This gave her renewed vigor, which she put to work in watering the flowers around her.

It wasn't until a couple hours later of talking about nothing in particular that his cell phone rang. She saw his body physically stiffen and his face harden as he answered it. He didn't look very pleased at hearing the person on the other end.

"Aya?" she questioned hesitantly after he hung up, watching as he turned away from her and went behind the counter.

He left the room completely for a minute or two, which made her a bit uncomfortable. He then came back with a black gym bag in hand, a serious look on his face.

"I'm sorry, but I have to go," he told her, moving toward the front of the shop with her in tow.

"Aya, what's wrong?" she asked, starting to worry a bit.

"I can't really explain right now, but I have to go. I'll drop you off though," he said, pulling her out the door with him, keys in hand.

She shook her head, looking down at the blue rose that she held in her hand.

"No…I can get back on my own," she told him, thinking back to her parents.

"Are you sure? I mean, I can give you a ride," he offered, but once again, she merely shook her head.

"I'll be okay. Maybe another time?"

He nodded his head, locking the door, before placing a hand on her shoulder. His eyes were apologetic, sorrow and sadness rimming the edges of them.

"I really am sorry," he said, hesitantly turning toward his car and leaving.

She waited until he was fully out of sight, before turning and walking off. She walked the entire way to the cemetery, flower in hand, and feet aching. She didn't realize how far of a walk it was until she got there. It was completely on the other side of town, quite a ways from the flower shop where she had originally been before.

It didn't take her very long to locate the 3 graves that sat side by side. The site still looked fairly new, despite how long it had been.

"I'm sorry for taking so long…" she whispered, kneeling down in front of the graves where what remained of her family lay. "I was going to bring a friend, but…something came up," she said, thinking back to Aya.

The thought of it still bothered her, worrying her as to if he was alright or not. She had to remind herself that he was a grown man, that he could take care of himself, but she still was unable to fully convince herself of it.

Sitting there, she also became aware of someone watching her. She couldn't see them, but she knew that they were there. For some reason, she had always been good at sensing the presence of others. Whoever this person was, she could tell that they meant her no harm. They kept their distance, merely looking on from afar, simply watching her. For some reason, they seemed familiar to her, but she didn't know why.

"Hello?" she called, looking around, but she received no answer save for the wind.

To be honest, she didn't really expect the person to answer, but it was still worth a try.

_I really don't get why they insist on hiding, it's not like I'm going to do anything anyway…_

After a while, she ran out of things to say to her parents and little sister, leaving her to simply sit and stare at the sky. It never truly registered in her mind that it was growing darker as exhaustion started to take its toll. She soon fell asleep all together on the ground without a care. In a way, she was content, regardless of the circumstances.

T

Ms. Saki breathed a sigh of relief as she headed home. It had been a long day and they had kept her at the hospital a few hours longer than she would have liked, but she was finally able to go home.

When she opened the door to her home, she was greeted by the sight of Elizabeth asleep on the couch. She was surprised to see her asleep on the couch, instead of up in the room that had been prepared and laid out for her. Although, she could tell by the look on the young girls face that she was exhausted. In fact, she didn't doubt that she had fallen to her knees upon entering the house, unable to go much further. So, deciding to go with that theory, she had no reason to suspect anything. Instead, she pulled out a blanket and laid it over her, warming and shielding her from the cool air in the house. After that, she herself went upstairs, settling in for the night.

T

She woke up with a yawn, stretching her arms above her head. It wasn't until she actually opened her eyes that she realized where she was at. She wasn't in the graveyard anymore where she had fallen asleep. She realized the place that she was in was Ms. Saki's house from the pictures that she had shown her while in the hospital.

_I don't remember coming here… So…how did I get here?_

She sighed, combing her hair back a bit with her fingers, trying her best to comb out the knots. She then rolled over, only to fall a short distance and hit the floor.

"Ow…" she groaned, holding her now throbbing head.

She looked up to find that she had been laying on a couch.

"No wonder…" she grumbled, standing up as she used the couch for support.

After that, she looked around. She didn't hear a single sound save for the ticking of the clock on the in the corner of the room. It was an old grandfather clock with a sun and a moon on it. It's actually fairly interesting in her opinion.

"Ms. Saki?" she called, walking into what would be the kitchen.

It was empty of people. The main counter was a white marble top, cabinets made of cherry wood, the refrigerator sleek steel, floors consisted of a mixture of little blue, dark blue, black, and white tiles. Everything seemed fairly modern and up to date.

She went to call her name again when she saw a note tapped to the refrigerator.

_Dear Elizabeth,_

_I'm sorry that I couldn't stay and greet you a good morning this morning, but work called me in early today. There's plenty of food in the refrigerator, so I'm sure that you'll find something to meet your tastes. I probably won't be back until late again tonight. Perhaps this time you might try sleeping on the bed in the room I've prepared for you? I'm sure that it would be more comfortable than the couch. Please just have fun and try to stay out of trouble?_

_Love,_

_Rina_

She let out a short laugh as she read this. Ms. Saki always did have an interesting sense of humor. As she thought this, there was a knock at the door, startling her.

"Coming!" she yelled, placing the note down on the counter and walking back into the living room toward the front door.

When she opened it though, no one was there. She even stepped forward and off of the porch, looking around, no one was even around. She sighed in annoyance as she turned to go back into the house, the moment she did, she jumped. Holding a hand over her heart, she stared down at the cat that sat on the front porch.

"It's just a cat…" she whispered, slowly walking up to it.

It just sat there staring at her, before laying down and rolling over, it's front arms spread out a bit as though wanting to play. This made her smile as she sat down beside it, rubbing underneath of its chin.

"Hey there little guy, what are you doing here?" she asked, petting his smooth coat.

She searched his neck, checking for a collar, but found none.

"A stray, huh? I know how that is," she chuckled, running her hand down his back.

She could hear the sound of him purr as he laid there, soaking in the attention that she was giving him. He was so cute with his bright blue eyes and pale grey coat. His paws were white, along with the tip of his tail.

"I wonder if Ms. Saki would let me keep you?" she mused quietly as she picked him up in her arms.

He just meowed softly, staring up at her with those big blue eyes of his.

"Well, I guess we'll just have to find out later, now won't we?" she smiled, taking him inside with her.

She took him into the kitchen after closing the door, sitting him down on the floor.

_Let's see…cat's like milk so…_

She opened the refrigerator, pulling the milk out along with a small bowl from the cabinet. She then filled the bottom of it up, placing it on the floor for him. She watched as he ran to it, drinking it up happily. He sat there, his tail wrapped around his feet as he lapped up the milk in the bowl.

"What to do with you now?" she murmured.

The moment she said that, he looked up at her with curious eyes.

"What?"

He just meowed, rubbing up against her legs.

"Hey, that tickles," she laughed, reaching down to pet him. "You know, I'm going to have to get you some food," she said, standing back up.

She then walked out of the kitchen, sitting down and placing her shoes on, before grabbing her jacket and placing it on.

"Now, remember, no tearing anything up, okay? Otherwise, I'll be in trouble and I might not get to keep you," she told him, grabbing the house key that Ms. Saki had given her and closing the door behind her.

She stood there for a moment, thinking of where the closest store would be to get cat food. Then it occurred to her that there was a place just across the street from the flower shop.

_Maybe I can check on Aya while I'm out then, _she thought as she shoved her hands into her pockets.

She then looked up at the sky. A few darker clouds had formed, threatening to possibly pour down rain sometime soon. If she was lucky, she'd be able to make it back before it managed to start raining. It wasn't a definite though, but she might be able to make it back before then. It all depended on Aya and if she ran into anyone else while she was out.

She hid a smile as she stood across the street from the flower shop. There were many customers there, most of them high school girls fawning over Aya and the three other men that were working the shop. She felt sorry for him upon seeing the look on his face. He was getting so annoyed, telling them to either buy something or leave.

_Poor Aya. I can't imagine having to deal with that every day, it would drive me insane. Maybe I'll help him when I'm done_ I thought, heading into the store.

She looked around the aisles, before finally finding the cat section. She smiled as she looked at everything. She knew that she couldn't buy too much, just in case. Although, she had a feeling that Ms. Saki would let her keep him, she didn't want to buy too much and then find out otherwise later.

So, after looking around,sheI decided on a small bag of natural dry cat food. She then decided on a food and water bowl, along with a simple blue collar to put around his neck.

As she came to the end of the aisle, she spotted some cat toys. Her eyes softened as she looked at them, seeing them all. Even though her arms were full, she knew that she had to get him at least one. So carefully, she sat everything down, crouching down in front of the rack of toys.

Her eyes glided over them, searching for the perfect one. There were so many to choose from. There were tiny mice, some filled with catnip, small bouncy balls with bells in them, shiny papers balls that crinkled like bags, feathers, strings on sticks, so many things. After looking through it all, she finally decided on three of them: a little mouse that squeaked, hanging from a stick, a small ball with a bell in it, and a small miniature cat with catnip in it for him to play with.

Satisfied with her decision, she picked everything up, trying her best to keep hold of it all. She then turned around, only to bump into someone and drop everything.

"I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, her face heating up in embarrassment as she looked at the person she had bumped into.

It was a young man slightly older than herself with long orange hair and stunning blue eyes. He wore a long forest green double-breasted trench coat with cream colored pants. The red tinted sunglasses that were perched on the yellow headband on his head had fallen down and lay with the rest of the stuff on the floor.

"I truly am sorry sir. I didn't even see you there…" she tried to apologize, plucking the sunglasses from the floor.

She held them out to him, an apologetic look on her face. He just gave her a calm smile, easily taking them from her hand as he removed his headband. She watched as his hair fell in his face, before he placed the headband back on, fixing his hair. He then put his sunglasses back on the top of his head were they had been before she had bumped into him.

"You shouldn't worry so much," he said.

She noticed that when he spoke, his voice was slightly rough around the edge, but still held a strange smoothness to it.

"Here, let me help you," he offered, crouching down and picking most of it up.

He then stood back up at his full height, making her look up at him. A faint blush crept up on her cheeks as he stared at her.

"Um…thank you," she said, holding the rest in her arms.

"Now, why don't you let me help you to the front? We wouldn't want you dropping things again now would we?" he teased.

_This is so embarrassing. I can only imagine what Ms. Saki would say…_

"So, is this for your cat or are you picking this up for someone else?" he asked, bringing her out of her thoughts.

"Um…I honestly don't know yet," she told him.

"How can you not know? Either it's yours or it's not," he said simply.

"Well, I found him this morning on my doorstep," she told him, watching as he nodded his head. "I'm sort of living with a friend until I manage to get on my feet, so I'm not sure if she'll let me keep him or not," she said quietly, thinking about her chances of being able to keep him.

After all, she'd be the one caring for him. She'd be at the house most of the time, so Ms. Saki really wouldn't have to worry about anything. He'd be her responsibility.

"Have you thought of a name for him yet?" he asked absentmindedly.

"Actually…I was thinking about calling him Ran," she said honestly.

He stood there for a moment and she could have sworn she saw him smirk, but she quickly dismissed that as he smiled at her.

"Sounds like a _purr-_fect name," he sounded like a cat when he said it, making her laugh. "Ah, I see I haven't lost my touch yet," he chuckled, setting everything on the counter.

"You're strange," she laughed, making him smile.

"You have no idea," he said quietly, making her look at him strangely for a moment.

"Paper or plastic Miss?" the cashier asked.

"Oh, um, paper please," she answered, pulling out her money as he easily bagged everything.

She then handed him the money, receiving her change.

"Have a nice day," he smiled, watching her pick the bags up.

The man with orange hair held the door open for her as she exited.

"Now remember, no more bumping into people on your way home," he said.

"I won't, thanks again," she smiled, looking across the street, girls still crowding the front of the flower shop.

_I guess I should help Aya out a bit. I know I wouldn't want to be surrounded like that._

**Okay, this is a completely new and never before seen chapter. I hope everyone liked it and I apologize for deleting all of my other chapters, but since I'm rewriting this story, it had to be done. Some of the older stuff will come back though to a degree, some of it will not though. Again I apologize. Please REVIEW and MESSAGE. Also check out my other fabulous stories for X-Men's Gambit, Final Fantasy 7's Vincent Valentine and Chaos, Fruits Basket's Kyo, Prince of Tennis's Kaidoh, and others! :)**


	4. Work and Play

Redo Knight Hunters

**Chapter 4**

**Work and Play**

"Aya!" Elizabeth called, pushing through the large crowd of love struck girls.

When Aya heard her, he turned around, a surprised look on his face. She also seemed to catch the attention of a few others as well. All together, these girls were starting to give her a headache.

"Elizabeth, what are you doing here?" he asked, trying to get over the shock of seeing her.

She stepped a bit closer, eyes watching her from every angle, trying to figure out her next move. The girls were monitoring every step that she took, every breath that she breathed. It was creepy.

"Well, I thought I'd _help_ with your current problem," she told him, winking at him for emphasis.

Realization dawned on him as she said this. Although, he seemed a bit hesitant, he still went along with it.

"Just give me an apron and I'll be fine," she whispered.

He nodded his head, fetching her an apron. She went behind the counter, placing her bags against the wall. After that, she tied the apron around her, before putting on a smile.

"Thanks again for giving me the job Aya, I really appreciate it, and I promise to work hard," she announced for everyone to hear.

The other three guys just stood there staring at Aya, wondering what in the world he was doing.

"Hello ladies, how may I help you?" she asked, a large smile on her face.

They just stared at her, a strange look on their faces.

"We have some wonderful Tiger Lilies today. We also have plenty of beautiful freshly cut roses that will brighten up any room in your home," she smiled.

One girl came forward, a shy look on her face as she approached her.

"Yes?"

"Um, I have a question… My little sister's been sick for a while and I wanted to get her some roses," she looked away for a moment, glancing at the other girls that were standing around her. "What kind would you recommend?"

Elizabeth smiled at her, guiding her into the shop.

"How old is she?" Elizabeth asked.

"12"

Elizabeth nodded her head as she opened one of the flower coolers. She pulled out three different roses. A white one, a red one, and a pink one.

"Together, the red and white is unity. I can tell that you love your little sister, therefore, you have the red. White symbolizes purity and innocence, which comes with being young. The pink says, 'Believe me, I know you'll get better'," Elizabeth explained, grabbing a deep blue silk ribbon and wrapping it around the stems to hold them together.

Elizabeth held them out to her for her to take. She held a calm, but thankful look on her face as she took them, holding them in her hands.

"Aya, would you mind taking care of the rest for her?" she asked, gently guiding the girl over to him.

He nodded his head, moving behind the counter, wrapping things up. After that, others started to follow the same pattern, coming to her for advice and selection. SDhe could see the relief on all of the guys faces as she took care of the loud and rowdy girls that constantly pestered them. Although, of course she wasn't able to take care of _all_ of them, but that's to be expected.

Surprisingly enough, she managed to get them through the rest of the day without much of a problem. After that, the tall guy with brownish blond hair came over to her, wrapping her in a hug. She nearly freaked out if it weren't for the fact of Aya pulling him off of her.

"Sorry, but you do realize that now we have to do some _actual_ restocking, right?"

She gave him a confused look.

"For once, we sold more flowers than we had to throw away."

She was still confused as he sighed, running his hand through his nearly shoulder length hair, removing the sunglasses that were perched on top of his head. She stared at him for a moment, finding the sunglasses a bit odd since it hadn't been that bright today and he'd stayed _inside_ away from the sun.

"You see, normally we have to throw a lot of the flowers away because they end up going bad. Those girls end up chasing away a lot of the customers," he told her.

"And they don't even buy anything half the time," said a younger guy with short, dark brown hair.

"Come on, be nice Ken," the youngest said.

"You know that it's true though Omi. There's no need to try and defend them since we're the ones losing money," Ken said bluntly.

"Well, I never see Yohji complaining about the attention," he countered, glancing at the tallest of them.

Yohji laughed nervously.

"Come on, Omi, you know it's not my style to turn away pretty girls," he chuckled, a poor attempt at defending himself.

"What happened to 'sticking to your own age group'?" Aya added, moving some pots out of the back room.

"Here, let me help," she said, moving to the back and grabbing some pots.

"No, you don't have to," Aya said, turning around after placing a large pot on the floor. "Yohji, do your job," he said in irritation, watching her come out of the room with a large pot in her arms.

"Here, let me have that," Yohji said, walking over and trying to take the pot from her arms.

She turned away, keeping him from grabbing it.

"I've got it, really. I mean, I've been helping all day, why stop now?" she questioned, crouching down to place the pot properly on the floor.

"Okay, I don't care where you got her Aya, but I like her," Yohji approved with a grin, watching her from where he stood. "I _really_ like her," he mumbled, earning a sharp elbow to the ribs from Aya.

Aya hadn't agree to allowing her in there just so that Yohji could flirt with her and look her up and down. She didn't seem to pay them any attention though as she went to the back, continuing to bring more pots out. A few times, Aya was actually afraid that she was going to drop one or something, but she somehow managed to hold onto them. It wasn't until she went back again that he changed his mind, hearing a pained and startled yell, along with the sound of braking pots.

Aya ran forward, pushing Yohji out of the way as he entered the storage room, finding Elizabeth on the floor. Pots were scattered and broken, pieces lying all around her. The shelf that some of them were on was now hanging off of the wall by its hinges.

"Are you alright?" Omi asked, brushing pieces of the pots off of her.

"I'm SO sorry!" she exclaimed. "I reached for a pot and the shelf just came loose," she explained, trying to stand up.

Aya took hold of her arm, helping her up the rest of the way. Looking down at her, he saw that she had a few cuts.

"Wait a sec…" Ken came forward, inspecting the shelf, before turning around with an eyebrow raised. "Isn't this the shelf that you said you _fixed…_Yohji?" he questioned.

Aya sighed upon hearing this. Couldn't that guy do _anything_ right?

"I don't know what you're talking about Ken," he said, slowly slinking out of the room.

"Yohji…get back here," Aya said, his voice low, boarder line monotone.

"Bye guys!" he called, quickly running to leave the shop.

Aya grabbed him by the back of the shirt before he could go anywhere, dragging him back into the room.

"Come on, Aya, you know I'm not good at fixing things," he cried out.

"Well, you get to clean this up AND you're paying to replace everything," Aya said, shoving him towards the mess as Omi helped him get Elizabeth out of the room.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, groaning as she sat down in a chair.

Aya groaned as he got the first aid kit, dumping some of it on the counter.

"Look, there's no need to apologize. It's his fault and he has to deal with it," Aya told her, gently taking her hand in his.

She had a place on her left palm where a piece of one of the pots had cut into her hand pretty good. She winced as he placed some alcohol on the cut, biting her tongue painfully. He didn't like doing this to her, but he had too. I mean, it's not like he wanted it to get infected or anything like that. Despite the pain though, she did fairly well, sitting there and watching as he cleaned and wrapped her hand.

After he was done cleaning the other few cuts on her arms and legs, he bandaged them, before checking her over one more time. Finding himself more or less satisfied, he let her go, getting up and placing the first aid kit back where he got it from.

"Now, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah…I'll be fine, I'm just a bit sore," she laughed, though Aya could tell it was forced.

"Here," Omi said, handing her a daisy.

Her eyes seemed to brighten up a bit as she gazed down at it, carefully taking it into her hands. She ran a fingertip over the delicate petals as though cherishing it. It made Aya smile on the inside as he watched her. She actually seemed happy despite the current pain that he knew was running through her body at the moment.

"Come on, I'll take you home," Aya said, helping her up.

"You don't have to," she assured him, trying to decline, but he just shook his head.

"You have stuff to carry, it's already late, and you're hurt. I don't think so," Aya said simply.

As he said this, she sighed, finally giving up. He held back a smirk, grabbing her bags and taking them outside to his car. She was definitely stubborn, that's for sure, but at least now Aya could make sure that she got home alright. He wouldn't want anything to happen to her.

"Be careful now," Omi said, closing the car door for her.

"I will," she promised, waving goodbye to him and the other two.

"Just remember, you're more than welcome to come back," Yohji called, a smile on his face as he winked at her.

Her face instantly grew hot.

"Goodbye, Yohji," Aya said tiredly, quickly turning on the car and driving away.

Elizabeth nearly laughed as she watched him, seeing how the little things could get to him, how his friends pushed his buttons. She had to admit, they all seemed pretty nice, especially Omi. He was so cute and helpful.

"So…what's all this stuff for?" Aya asked, referring to the bags in the back seat.

"A new friend," she told him.

"So, you have more friends than just me?" he questioned.

She let out a short laugh, realizing that he was simply giving her a hard time in his own little way, so she decided to play along.

"Oh yes, I've been making quite a few friends lately. My day doesn't revolve just around you, you know?" she said plainly.

She heard him let out a faint snort at her response.

"Yes because I'm just that great," he said sarcastically.

This made her stifle a laugh, placing a hand on his arm for a moment.

"Oh, come on, you're not that bad Aya. You're basically the only person I even talk to," she said honestly.

When we got to Ms. Saki's house, he turned off the car and got out, coming over and helping her out of the car. She was about to grab some of the stuff, before he got in her way, stopping her from going any further.

"Don't even think about," he scolded, taking all of it in his arms.

"Aya…" she whined, before following him and climbing up the porch.

He didn't pay her any attention.

"Stop whining already," he said, "you've been doing it the whole way here."

This made her laugh, earning another groan from her as a result of the pain caused by her laughing. So ignoring the pain, she unlocked the door, letting Aya inside.

"Ran?" she called, not noticing Aya's stiffened form, though she did see him tense for a fraction of a second. "Here boy, here kitty kitty," she called, looking around for him.

She found the silly cat curled up in the kitchen.

"There you are," she smiled, kneeling down in front of him. "Come here you."

She then turned to Aya, holding the small cat in her arms.

"You were wondering who all that stuff was for? Well, here he is," she smiled, stroking his head gently.

Ran purred at her touch, before meowing and jumping out of her arms onto the floor. He immediately went over to Aya, rubbing up against his legs.

"Aww…he likes you."

It was so cute and she couldn't help but to laugh at Aya's sudden awkwardness as he tried to move around the cat. Ran just wouldn't leave him alone though and kept pestering him, meowing for attention.

"Come on, Ran, let him breathe," she giggled, scooping the cat up in her arms.

He meowed in protest, so she sat him down on the counter next to the bags. He seemed curious as he trotted over to them, standing up on his hind legs a bit to try and look inside. It didn't take long before he knocked one over, everything inside rolling onto the counter in front of him.

He meowed again, sniffing at one of the toys, before nudging it with his nose. He did it a few more times, before finally deciding to pick it up in his mouth.

Elizabeth merely stood there watching in amusement, watching him tug on it with his teeth. He rolled over on his side, pulling it against his body with his paws as he kicked at it with his back feet, chewing on it.

While he was busy doing that, she reached into the other bag and pulled out the collar that she had gotten. He glanced up at her almost instantly as she held the collar in her hand, staring at it. She then pulled him over and fastened it around his neck. He squirmed slightly for a moment, but stopped after she got it around his neck all of the way. It fit him perfectly.

"There, now all we need is Rina's approval and we're good to go," Elizabeth announced, petting his head.

He meowed happily, shoving his head against her hand affectionately.

"I hope she lets me keep you," she whispered.

He meowed again, trying to climb into her arms. She picked him up, allowing him to nudge her cheek with his nose.

"I think he's trying to tell you not to worry and to cheer up," Aya commented, coming to stand beside her.

She let out a small sigh, staring down at the little cat in her arms.

"But…what if she says no? I couldn't possibly take him to the pound," she told him, hugging Ran to her chest gently.

He meowed, reaching out to paw at Aya's arm.

"I'll take him," he said, reaching out and petting Ran's head.

"Really?" she asked in surprise.

He nodded his head.

"Yeah. Besides, it'll give me an excuse to keep you around," Aya said bluntly.

"Hey!" she yelled, shoving his arm.

He just chuckled, pushing her head down a bit.

"For someone so quiet, you sure know how to joke around," she pointed out, moving out from under his hand.

"Oh yeah, before I go…" he reached into his back pocket, "Here," he said, placing a fair amount of money into her hand.

She stared at him in disbelief.

"You can't be serious," she tried to reason.

"Look, you earned it, and you saved us a lot of trouble. Just take it, okay?"

Elizabeth looked at him for a moment, seeing the sincerity in his eyes. So with a low sigh, she nodded, accepting the money from him.

"Thank you…" she bowed my head in thanks, walking him to the door. "I'll see you later Aya," she smiled.

"Let me know how thing turn out, okay?"

"Okay… Oh yeah, hold on a sec," she said, running back into the kitchen again.

She came back out and handed him a small piece of paper.

"This is my cell phone number. Ms. Saki got it for me the other day," she said shyly.

He nodded his head as he took it, his fingers brushing hers for a moment.

"Get some rest," he told her, before turning and leaving.

She couldn't help but smile as he left. It really was nice having a friend that she could count on. In fact, it's just as he said when they first met. A friend is someone that you can count on, someone that will have your back.

So, having nothing else to do, she went upstairs to her room and laid down. Ran laid next to her, curling up in her arms and purring, his tail curling around him.

_Such peace in a simple little thing,_ she thought as she fell asleep, a breeze blowing in through her bedroom window, and an unseen shadow standing by her closet.

**Okay people, this chapter is also a new and never before seen chapter. I hope that everyone liked it? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me to let me know how you feel about it. Once again, I apologize for deleting my other chapter, but as I said, it was necessary. Also, please check out my other stories for FINAL FANTASY 7, FRUITS BASKET, LABYRINTH,FMA, X-MEN and MORE. THANKS EVERYBODY!**


	5. Sickness of Discovery

**Redo Knight Hunters**

**Chapter 5**

**Sickness of Discovery**

Elizabeth woke up to the smell of bacon cooking downstairs, the scent easily making its way up tohery room. Looking around though, she found that Ran was nowhere to be found. Her room was of any living thing save for herself.

"Ran?" she called, looking around for him.

There was no response as she walked out of her room and downstairs.

"Ran?" she called again, walking into the kitchen.

The smell of bacon became more prominent as she stepped into the kitchen, the sound of the grease popping hit her ears. Ms. Saki was standing in front of the stovetop, frying pan in hand as she moved the bacon around a bit, the grease falling and collecting on one end.

"Who are you looking for?" Ms. Saki asked, glancing at Elizabeth as she cooked.

"Um…my cat," she whispered, looking around the room, hoping that she'd possibly see him hiding somewhere.

"Ah, him," Ms. Saki sighed as she turned the stove off, turning to face the young girl before her. "I'm sorry to say this, but he can't stay," she said regrettably.

The girl's heart fell upon hearing this. Yes, she knew that there might be a chance that Ms. Saki wouldn't let her keep him, but she had been so hopeful.

"I have patients that are allergic, so I can't take any chances, I'm sorry," she said.

Elizabeth gazed down at the floor sadly, the rims of her eyes starting to slowly become wet.

"Where is he?" she asked, praying that Ms. Saki hadn't taken him to the pound while she was asleep.

"He's outside in a carrier," Ms. Saki informed her, placing food on the table. "I have to go, but I'll see you later. Like I said, I really am sorry Elizabeth," she apologized as she grabbed her stuff.

"It's okay…" Elizabeth sighed, walking to the door with her.

The nurse went to pick up his carrier when Elizabeth stopped her.

"N-No!" I cried out, grabbing it, "I-I'll take care of it," she told her.

Ms. Saki nodded her head, continuing on her way. Elizabeth waited til she was gone before doing anything. She felt so much like crying right now as she set the carrier back down. The sore throat that she already had since waking up this morning wasn't helping how she felt. She didn't even bother touching the food as she went back inside and put all of his stuff in a messenger bag and getting dressed properly.

"I guess there's only one other option," she said, picking the carrier up.

He meowed, pawing at the cage wanting out. Unfortunately, she couldn't let him out.

The walk from the house to the flower shop was mainly quiet on both sides. When she got there though, everything changed.

Elizabeth just stood outside across the street, watching everyone with a solemn look on her face, until finally sitting down against a wall. Ran meowed in distress as she sat there, looking out ahead of her.

The flower shop was already bustling with obsessed girls, even at this hour. It was as if all that they could think about was those four guys. They were completely obsessed.

Yohji, had been the first to notice her, standing above everyone else as he glanced across the street. He shrugged past the girls, jogging across the street.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked, crouching down in front of her.

"Not really…" she mumbled, feeling slightly sick.

"Why don't you come with me," he said, glancing back at the shop, "We'll go around back," he said, carefully helping her stand.

She really didn't say anything else as she followed after him, going the back way through the alley and entering through the back door.

Yohji found Aya standing in front of them once he had gotten her inside, blocking her from everyone else's view. Yohji had tried to take the carrier from her, but she wouldn't let him. Instead, she held onto it tightly, her eyes closed. Although, once Aya saw her, it was like everything fit into place in his mind.

"Bring her downstairs," Aya said, glancing back at the front of the shop.

Yohji nodded his head, placing a hand at the small of the girl's back and leading her downstairs, letting her sit down on the couch. The cat inside the carrier started meowing up a storm, scratching at the cage door. Seeing this, Yohji decided to let him out. The moment he did, the little cat sprang from the cage and onto the couch beside Elizabeth, pawing at her front for attention.

She still held a sad look on her face as she stared down at him, petting him quietly.

"She's not letting you keep him…is she?" Aya asked, glancing down at the cat.

"No…" she whispered, letting out a faint groan.

"You know, you don't look so good," Yohji commented, leaning down in front of her.

He placed a hand on her forehead, feeling it, before pulling it back. She was a bit warm.

"Maybe you should lay down," he suggested, moving a few things out of the way.

"Have you eaten anything yet today?" Aya asked, receiving a tired shake of the head.

He sighed as he turned to go back upstairs.

"Keep an eye on her," Aya told Yohji, walking up the steps.

"Here," Yohji said, taking his jacket from the corner and rolling it up for her to use as a pillow.

She laid her head down on it, closing her eyes tightly. Her cat curled up next to her, laying his head on her neck. It was probably the most peculiar thing that Yohji had ever seen. He had known dogs to comfort their owners, but never a cat. It was truly odd in his mind.

Turning around, he accidentally knocked over her bag, a piece of paper falling out among a few other things. When he looked down at it, he noticed a strange string of numbers written on it. Even though he didn't know what her handwriting looked like, it was obvious that it wasn't hers. Also, even though he didn't know much about numbers, he was pretty sure that the second string was a code of some sort.

Seeing that her eyes were still closed, he quickly knelt down and stuck the piece of paper in his back pocket, cleaning up the rest of the mess. He stood back up when Aya came back down with a small cup of soup. Yohji gave him a quick nod of the head, before going back upstairs and into the shop.

Many of the girls whined and complained when Yohji pulled Omi to the side to speak with him.

"What's up Yohji?" Omi asked curiously.

Yohji looked around for a moment, before turning back to him. He grabbed the paper from his pocket, hiding it discreetly by his side.

"Omi, I want you to go upstairs and look into this for me," he said quietly, handing Omi the piece of paper.

"What is it?" Omi asked, looking down and inspecting it.

"I don't know, that's why I want you to look into it," Yohji told him, a serious tone in his voice.

Omi nodded his head quickly, handing Yohji his watering can, before quickly going upstairs to his room. Yohji had a strange feeling about this, but he was hoping that it was just a fluke and nothing more.

T

Omi felt weird having Yohji ask him something like that. Yohji had been kind of hesitant and careful on the fact of making sure that no one heard them when he handed Omi the piece of paper. It was just a bunch of numbers, one of them being a phone number. Although, Omi could tell that it was important to him, so he agreed to look into it.

Firstly, Omi found that the number was an unlisted one, a private one. He continued to look into it further, messing around with the code on the paper. There was a whole mess of encryptions, which caught his attention, making him wonder exactly where it was that Yohji came across this. Omi was shocked when he finally brought everything up.

T

They had closed the shop up a little earlier than usual as a result of a problem that needed to be addressed.

Omi had been the first to go downstairs, getting a surprise upon seeing the sleeping girl laying on the couch.

"What's going on?" he asked, turning toward Aya.

"She's sick," he stated, kneeling down in front of her.

Aya placed a gentle hand on her warm cheek, before tentatively dragging it to her forehead. She was still hot.

"Yohji, take her up to my room, I'll take care of the rest later," he said, standing back up.

The little cat beside her meowed, jumping down and pawing at Aya's leg. He looked down in question.

"You can go too if you want," he said, the others staring at him strangely. "Don't ask," he warned, watching as Yohji carefully slid his arms under the girl's back and legs with practiced ease.

"Man, she's light," he commented, moving toward the stairs.

The cat followed right behind him, skipping up the steps and out of the room.

A few minutes later, Yohji came back downstairs, cat in tow.

"Mind telling me _why_ he's following me," Yohji asked Aya.

"How am I suppose to know," he shrugged, sitting down on the couch. "Now," he started, turning toward Omi, "What's this all about?"

Omi stood there for a moment, holding a piece of paper in his hands.

"Well, first off, I want to know where Yohji got this from," he said, holding up the paper in his hand.

Aya stood up and took it, looking down at it.

"What is it?" Aya asked, skimming over the numbers written on it.

"Well, in simpler terms, it's a phone number accompanied by a code…an encryption code," he added, glancing at Yohji.

"Yohji…where did you get this?" Aya asked quietly, his eyes slowly lifting from the paper.

"Actually…it kind of fell out of her bag," he said nervously.

"What?" Aya shifted his weight to his other foot.

"I accidentally knocked her bag over and it sorta fell out," he explained.

Everyone was quiet for several minutes, trying to process everything.

"She didn't write this," Aya whispered, looking over it again. "Omi, what did you find?"

"It's a link to a case file," he paused for a moment, "one of the very same one's Persia's given us from the police a while back," he explained.

"You've got to be kidding me," he said in disbelief.

Ken decided to come forward.

"The question is, _how_ and _why_ does she have it," Ken said, getting right to the question that everyone else was wondering, but had yet to bother asking.

"She couldn't have just gotten it from anyone…she probably didn't know that she even had it," Aya said quietly, realizing something. "Someone slipped it into her stuff," he realized.

"Omi, which case is it?" Yohji asked, sitting down on the couch in a lazy manner.

"It's actually an abduction case, but it's random, that's why it's so strange," Omi explained.

For a moment though, he stopped, running and getting a folder from the computers drawer. He opened it, skimming over a few things.

"This can't be…" he whispered.

"What is it?" Yohji asked, coming to stand by his side.

Omi was looking down at some pictures, before pulling one of them out.

"What the…" Yohji breathed, staring down at the picture in disbelief. "I-it's…Elizabeth," he whispered, his eyes slightly wide with shock.

"What?" Aya got up and snatched the picture from them, staring at it.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing. It was indeed Elizabeth, but it was her as a child, a little girl. She had been kidnapped when she was small. She had then been found two weeks later, nearly beaten within an inch of her life. According to the file, there had also been other children, but the culprits were never found. They had found a body or two though, but that was about it. There were also many other pictures in the folder. They weren't all old though, apparently, the activity had started back up again within the last couple months.

"Should we ask her about it?" Omi asked as he looked down at the file.

"Not right now," Aya said.

"Yeah, she's already sick as it is," Yohji commented.

"But I still don't understand…why now?" Omi inquired, looking over everything. "And why did she have it, unless…" then it hit him.

He sighed heavily, before the large TV turned on revealing Persia.

"Hunters of the night, you have a new mission. You must protect a young woman by the name of Elizabeth Itogawa, though now known as Elizabeth Mitsua," he said.

Everyone stared at him in disbelief. Their mission couldn't possibly have to do with her. How could they possibly involve her in the terrors of their lives.

"Wait a minute, Itogawa?" Aya questioned as he stepped forward.

"Yes, her adoptive parents legally changed her last name in an attempt of protecting her from her past," Persia explained.

"Protecting her from her past… Wait a minute…Itogawa…not the daughter of Kenji Itogawa?" Yohji exclaimed, his fingers clutching the couch.

"I'm afraid so," Persia said sadly.

"Wait a second, Yohji, who's Kenji Itogawa?" Omi asked curiously.

"He's a murderous bastard. No wonder her adoptive family tried to hide her true identity from people, it's probably the only reason why she's still alive," he said quietly.

"You can't be serious? She's the daughter of someone like that?" Ken asked.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean that she should be treated as though she were a murderer herself," Persia said, making that fact clear to everyone in the room. "She was kidnapped as a child and taken away from that place, though she was beaten severely within inches of her life. I still remember the case as if it were yesterday," he reminisced.

It had probably been about 10 years ago since the incident had happened. He had still been with the police as he was now. It had been late in the evening when he had first heard of it, the kidnapping of a young girl from the outer rim of the city. It was a place that was supposed to be quiet and safe, but as he knew, looks can be deceiving.

The young girls name was Elizabeth Itogawa. Father, Kenji Itogawa, from Japan. Mother, Isabella Itogawa, maiden name Davidson from America. The girl was but a small child when she was kidnapped and at the time, there had been a string of kidnappings. Given the fact that the young girl's mother was deceased, everything was left up to her father. Her father could not pay the ransom and actually denied to pay it, leaving the poor child to fend for herself. Persia and others had suspected that he was partly behind his daughters kidnapping, playing a key role in her abduction. Although, no one could ever find enough proof to link him to it.

In all honesty, Persia had actually been the one to save her, much like he had done for Omi when Omi was small. Though, Elizabeth hadn't been able to run along Persia's side as Omi had done. Persia had to carry the young girl, running away to save her life and take her to the police hospital for much needed medical attention. The St. Luke's police hospital had been the only safe place to take her at the time. After that, weeks had gone by until she was placed in foster care. A few years later after being moved -around, she was adopted by her late family whom had been killed in the explosion.

Persia had explained various details about the case from years ago, leaving everyone silent as death itself. Even the little cat Ran was silent, sitting quietly by Aya's feet, a paw resting on his leg.

"So…this is the truth behind her past?" Aya whispered, his eyes gazing into nothingness as thoughts roamed his mind.

"Aya?" Yohji placed a hand on his shoulder, bringing him out of his thoughts. "I'm guessing that it's safe to say that you're in on this mission, right?" Yohji assumed, merely receiving a nod of the head from Aya in response.

"Good. Since she's already in your care, it will make things much easier on her and everyone else involved," Persia explained. "Just make sure to watch over her and keep her safe. We have real reason to believe that she's in danger, so there's no one better to protect her than the four of you, her friends."

Everyone nodded upon hearing this.

"Hunters of the night, fulfill this mission and keep this young woman safe. Good night everyone," he said, dismissing everyone.

After that, everyone nodded their heads, making their way upstairs. Ran was the first to go up the steps, waiting for Aya to reach the top. He then followed Aya up more stairs and outside on the balcony walkway that led to the rooms, quietly entering Aya's room with him. Elizabeth was laying on Aya's bed, her forehead caked in sweat from fever.

All he could do was sigh as he stared down at her, kneeling down in front of her as he gently brushed his fingertips over her face, brushing her hair out of the way. Her eyelids flitted open for a moment.

"Aya…?" she whispered weakly, straining her eyes open.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked quietly, sitting there before her.

She tried her best to shrug, only groaning in the end. Her eyes closed again for a moment, before opening and staring into his violet pools.

"Tired…" she all but whimpered.

"Then go back to sleep," he told her, standing up.

She caught his hand weakly as he stood, nearly missing it, making him look down at her.

"Please…don't leave?" she whispered, fighting to stay awake.

"Why?" he asked curiously.

"I don't…want to be…alone," she whispered, peeling her eyes open slightly to glance at him.

She watched his face carefully, watching for any change, no matter how small. It was a minute later when he finally nodded his head after thinking, deciding to stay by her side.

"Alright, I'll stay, but you need to sleep," he told her, fixing her back in the bed properly, pulling the sheets up to her neck easily.

"Thank you…Aya," she whispered, still holding onto his hand with the little bit of strength that she had left.

It didn't take very long for her to fall back asleep, her hand still holding onto his by a thread. He didn't understand how she managed to do all of this, going through everything that she did. She somehow managed to retain some small amount of strength and yet she used it to continue holding his hand with her own. This girl was different, far different from any other he had ever met. The only question now, was how long it would actually last. How long would she stay in their company, how long would she stay by their side as friends when she found everything out? He knew this would undoubtedly happen at some point, given the fact that it was her that they were to be protecting now, she was their mission.

**Okay, once again, another entirely newer and never before seen chapter. I hope that everyone liked it. Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me to let me know what you think? I always enjoying hearing what people have to say about my stories, no matter how small it may be. And remember, it can be annonomous if you don't have an account. Thanks again everyone and remember to check out my other fabulous stories as well.**


	6. Fever and Kindness

**Redo Knight Hunter's Weiss Kreuz**

**Chapter 6**

**Fever and Kindness**

The following morning, Aya woke up to find Elizabeth still sleeping in his bed. She just laid there, her face still a bit red, and a faint layer of sweat coating her skin. It appeared as though her fever had broken sometime during the night, but still, she retained a small portion of it in her system. What surprised him the most upon lifting his tired head was that she still held onto his hand. Even in sleep, she still grasped it in her delicate hand. As he stood though, his hand slipped from hers, allowing her hand to fall to the side.

Soon, there was a knocking on his door, accompanied by a voice.

"Hey, Aya, you awake yet?" Yohji called.

Aya ran a hand through his hair in a tired manner, smoothing it out with a yawn. He gave one last glance at the girl that laid in his bed before moving to the door and opening it, leaning against the frame.

"Yeah, what do you want?" Aya asked, rubbing his eye with the back of his hand.

"Just checking to see if you were awake and also to see how she was doing," Yohji said, gesturing behind Aya.

Aya nodded his head and pushed off of the wall. He went and shoved the chair next to the bed against the wall, pushing it out of the way.

"She's doing better," he said, watching Yohji kneel down in front of her, gently caressing her face for a moment.

Aya's body tensed slightly, but went unnoticed by Yohji.

"I feel sorry for her, you know?" Yohji commented. "Being subject to such things at such a young age. I don't think that I would have been able to handle something like that," he admitted, carefully standing back up and straightening his shirt.

He glanced over at Aya for a moment, eyeing his attire.

"Aren't you going to change?" he asked.

Aya rolled his eyes, shoving him toward the door.

"Why don't you just get out," he muttered, shutting the door behind him, and hearing laughter from the other side of the door.

After that, he went over to his dresser and pulled out a shirt, removing the current one from his torso. He then stretched for a moment, before slipping the new one over his head, only to turn around and find someone staring at him tiredly.

"Hey," he whispered, slowly coming over to her side.

"Hi…" she whispered tiredly, turning over a bit and yawning.

She felt so drained of energy as she tried to sit up, a faint gasp leaving her lips as she did so. At this, Aya carefully placed a hand behind her, helping her to sit up properly.

"Thanks," she breathed, placing a hand on her face.

She felt sick to her stomach almost, but not quite. In fact, she felt like taking a shower, but it would be awkward to ask such a thing of Aya. Then again, what wouldn't at this point?

"Hey, Aya?" she looked over at him, watching him relax a bit more.

"Yeah, what is it?" he asked, looking back at her.

"Um, would you mind if I took a shower?" she asked hesitantly.

For a moment, he looked like he would laugh at her for asking such a silly thing, but he never did. Instead, he nodded his head.

"Go right ahead," he said, standing back up and going over to his dresser.

Elizabeth watched as he pulled out an orange sweater, the one that she would see him wear on occasion, and a pair of sweat pants. He brought them back over and placed them down beside her on the bed.

"You can use these if you want," he offered.

This made her smile as she pulled the clothes to her chest, adoring the warmth and softness of the sweater against her. She then brought her legs over to the side of the bed, making a move to stand up.

"Careful," he warned, helping to steady her as she stood.

She leaned against him for support, nearly falling to her knees as she stood there. He helped keep her up, moving toward the door, his arm wrapped securely around her waist. This made her blush.

"When you're done, just call for me, okay?" he said, looking over his shoulder for a moment.

They were down one level from his room, now inside the building, but still above the shop.

"If I don't come, call for one of the others, alright?"

She nodded her head as she sat next to the tub. He left a moment later, closing the door behind him. She would have locked it, but she knew that she could trust these guys.

So, without any further thoughts, she turned on the shower. She sat there watching the hot water pour from the faucet for a couple minutes, before pulling her shirt over her head. She repeated this, removing the rest of her clothes as well. She shivered for a moment, rubbing her arms as she stood there, the cool air around her hitting her skin and making the hair on her arms stand up. After staring at the water a moment longer, she stepped into the shower. It felt so good to have the hot water running over her body, washing away the remnants of sweat and dirt that had accumulated upon her skin. It washed away her aches and pains, but it also made her feel sleepy again after loosening her muscles up.

It had probably been maybe a hour when she was finally done, now sleepy again. She just let out a yawn as she stepped out of the shower, drying herself off. She slipped Aya's sweater on over her head and pulled the sweatpants on over her legs. The sweater was a bit big, but it was so warm so she really didn't mind. She then tossed the towel over her head, lazily rubbing her scalp. She yawned again as she called out for Aya. She sat there for a few minutes, but he never showed. Instead, Yohji came up, a curious look on his face.

"Did you need something?" he asked kindly, stretching his arms above his head for a moment.

"Um…I need help getting back upstairs," she said sheepishly, letting her eyes peek through underneath the towel.

He just chuckled and picked her up bridal style causing her to squeak in surprise and wrap her arms around his neck. It was an automatic reaction that she couldn't help, but he didn't seem to mind one bit. He just laughed as he took her up the steps, walking out to the balcony and towards Aya's room. Once inside, he placed her down on the bed, ruffling her hair in a friendly manner. She couldn't help but to laugh, making him smile.

"Hey, I'll fix you some soup, alright?" he said. "Is tomato alright with you?"

She nodded her head in response.

"Yes, that's fine," she told him, snuggling into the orange sweater that she was wearing.

She still couldn't believe how soft and warm it was. Plus, it was Aya's no less. This made her smile even more. She was so lucky to have him in her life, so lucky to have a friend such as him that would watch out for her and take care of her if need be. In fact, he was like family in her eyes, and she had no family of her own anymore.

"I have no family…" she whispered.

The mere thought of this made her sad and she felt like crying. This feeling sat with her all the way until Yohji got back, leaving him worried upon entering the room.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, sitting down on the side of the bed with her.

She just looked down, trying to rid herself of tears, but it didn't exactly work as she would have liked.

Yohji ran a hand through his hair for a moment, before smiling and pulling out a small blue flower.

"Now, I think that a Delphinium would suit you so much better," he said, making her dry her tears.

She stared down at the curious little flower. A flower that held such an interesting blue to it.

"A…Delphinium?" she asked quietly, taking it into her hands.

It was a small flower yes, but it was still very beautiful with its shapely petals, and bright boarder line deep blue color. It also had a small tail shape conjoined petal that resided on the back of the flower near the stem.

"Yeah, it's supposed to symbolize joy," he said, adding to her accumulation of knowledge.

"It is…a rather cheerful looking flower," she whispered, rubbing her eyes a bit.

A few more tears fell as she looked at it. She was surprised though when Yohji reached out and brushed them away though. Such a soothing feeling, a hand upon the cheek, the warmth of another's skin against one's own. Such a thing brings back memories for her. This in itself made her cry further as she remembered my parents.

"H-hey, what's wrong? Don't cry," he said, taking her shoulders gently in his hands.

She couldn't help it as she pressed her face against his shirt, tears flowing from past memories.

He didn't seem to understand what was wrong as he sat there, trying his best to comfort her. She was a crying girl who had no family, only faint memories dwelling in the distant past. She was practically a nobody, a nonexistent person on this accursed planet we call Earth.

"Look, the soup should cheer you up, alright? It's pretty good, even if it is instant," he explained, forcing her to laugh a bit.

This made him smile as he pushed her back, grabbing a tissue and dabbing her eyes gently.

"There we go, all better," he smiled, brushing back a bit of her hair.

"Thank you, Yohji," she sniffed, a hiccup soon following.

"Don't mention it," he said, sitting there with her for a few minutes, watching her eat her soup.

She was shocked at how sleepy she felt now. The shower had already done its job in adding to it. The crying had doubled that. Now, the soup was pulling it all together, making her eyelids heavy.

She yawned again, her body sinking down against the headboard of the bed. She hadn't even been awake very long and already she was dead tired again. It was just ridiculous in her mind.

"Why don't you get some more sleep?" Yohji suggested, retrieving the now empty soup cup from her tired hands.

She made little protest when he laid her down on the bed the rest of the way, pulling the covers up a bit. He felt like an older brother with the way that he treated her. It felt nice.

"Now, get some rest squirt," he teased, getting up and making his way to the door.

As he did this, Ran came over to him and meowed, pawing at his leg.

"Now what?" he asked, looking down at the little cat.

Ran just meowed and then pawed at the door, looking back up at Yohji a moment later.

"I think he needs to use the bathroom," Elizabeth yawned, glancing over at Yohji. "Would you mind taking him out?" she asked, rubbing her eyes a bit. "He's pretty well mannered," she assured him.

Yohji nodded as he walked out of the room, Ran following right behind him. He took the little fur ball outside like she had asked, taking him over to the side of the building. Yohji was surprised when Ran actually went to the bathroom, meowing at Yohji when he was done. She wasn't kidding when she said that he was well mannered.

"You're an odd one, you know that?" Yohji commented, looking down at the little gray cat.

All he did was meow at him in response, following Yohji back inside. He followed Yohji all the way back upstairs to the room, walking back inside once the door was open. He just shook his head and muttered to himself how strange the cat was as he walked over to the bed.

Elizabeth was fast asleep again already, her hands curled up near her face. That's when Yohji noticed her left hand and the damp bandage that was still wrapped around it. He let out a sigh as he left the room for a moment, going downstairs and grabbing the first aid kit. That little cat of hers was sitting there waiting for him when he got back.

"You _are_ a cat right?" he joked, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

She made no sign of movement as he sat there, even when he pulled her hand away from her face.

Yohji took his time unwrapping it, paying attention to her face for any sign of waking up. When he was done pulling the last of it away, he turned his attention to her hand. The area around the cut was slightly yellowed, showing the beginning of infection. He guess even with the cleaning that Aya did, it still wasn't enough. Then again, the bandage never got changed yesterday either.

It was only when he started to put some peroxide on it that she moved a bit, curling her face into the pillow, her legs stretching out a bit more.

"Cute," Yohji thought aloud, whipping the cut of the peroxide.

After that, he put some ointment on it and began wrapping it back up with a clean bandage. About half way through wrapping it, the door opened, revealing Aya in the doorway.

"Hey Aya," Yohji waved, finishing up with Elizabeth's hand.

Aya closed the door behind him, setting a bag down on the floor against the wall.

"What are you doing in here?" he asked, going over to her pack and pulling a few things out.

"Well, after taking what's his name out, I came back up here and decided to change the bandage on her hand," Yohji explained, tying a small knot on the bandage.

"I see. Well, you can go now, I'll take care of her," Aya said, pouring some cat foot into a bowl that he'd pulled from Elizabeth's bag.

Yohji sighed as he stood, stretching his back. He looked over at Aya, watching him stroke the cat's head.

"You know Aya, if I didn't know any better, I'd say that you actually felt something for her," Yohji said, standing at the door.

Aya just gave Yohji a tired look that told him to leave him alone.

"Hey, just sayin'," Yohji laughed, closing the door behind him.

Aya sat there, staring at the wall that divided his from the one beside it. There was a conjoining door placed between them, leading into the next room over. The room itself was currently being used as an extra storage room, if you can even call it that. Though as he looked at it, a thought came to mind.

_She could stay here _he thought.

She could stay there with them, that way, she'd be safe and also she'd have her cat like she wanted. It would be perfect. Plus, she already enjoyed helping out and working around the shop, so it wouldn't be that bad. He'd be able to keep a better eye on her and make sure that she stayed out of trouble. All that they'd really have to do is just clear the room out. It already had a bed, so that wouldn't be an issue, they'd just have to clean and dust everything is all.

He looked over at her, gently brushing his fingertips against her cheek. She looked so cute in his mind as he gazed at her, her right hand curled up by her face like a small child, his sweater hiding all traces of her hands. She seemed to like the oversized sweater that was probably two sizes too big on her small form. The sweater itself came down on her far enough that when standing, it would almost seem as though she were wearing a short dress.

Continuing with his thoughts, he stood up, walking to the conjoining door. He ran his hand over the door for a moment, thinking about things.

_To have her so close…_

His hand slid over the knob of the door.

_To have her around and in front of me everyday…_

He opened it slowly, his eyes meeting the darkness of the closed in room.

_To see her smiling face…_

He stepped inside, flipping the light switch on the wall to his left.

_To hear her gentle voice…_

His eyes scanned the room, thinking about where they would begin.

_To gaze upon her angelic face as she sleeps…_

It seemed as though that look was all that he needed to convince him of his thoughts.

**Okay everyone, once again, ANOTHER new and never before seen chapter is up now. I hope that everyone enjoyed it? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me letting me know what you think? Or even if you have any ideas for me. Thank you everyone and remember to check out all my other stories as well. :)**


	7. New Home and Chance Encounters

**Redo Knight Hunters Weiss Kreuz**

**Chapter 7**

**New Home and Chance Encounters**

A week later, the room next to Aya's was completely cleared out. It had been dusted and vacuumed, scrubbed and cleaned, no corner left unturned. The whole room was spotless. The guys had gone to great lengths to set everything up for that Mitsua girl. During the time in between, she had stayed with them and slept in Aya's room, while Aya slept downstairs on the couch. She had tried to argue with him about it, saying that she would take the couch and he should have his bed, but he refused. As an afterthought though, she didn't really mind sleeping in Aya's bed. His bed was nice and warm, comforting to her knowing that it was his. It had become something familiar to her, though not in the same sense as the hospital bed in which she had spent so many days and nights on. To her, this was a different kind of familiarity.

"Elizabeth, are you ready to go?" Aya asked, looking into her room from his.

She was putting her shoes on as she sat on her bed tying the laces up. Once she was done, she stood up and ran to Aya's side, a smile on her face. How he loved seeing her smile.

"Ready," she announced, excited for whatever they were going to do. "So, you never told me, what are we doing exactly?" she asked as she opened the door, finding Yohji standing before them.

"Shopping," Yohji said, answering her question.

She gave him a curious look.

"Shopping? For what?" she asked.

"For you," Aya said, speaking up as he closed his door.

Her face went slightly red upon hearing this.

"For me?" she choked out.

Both men nodded in response. Yohji then wrapped his arm around her shoulders in a friendly manner, pulling her close.

"Don't worry so much, alright? It's our treat. Besides, you need some clothes of your own," he said, ruffling her hair.

"Yohji!" she squealed, her face tinting red in embarrassment.

She pulled away, bumping into Aya who placed a hand lightly on her head. She looked away in embarrassment, feeling like a small child. Yohji merely laughed at the sight before him, embarrassing her further as they got outside and into the crowd of people.

Not wanting to get separated, she held fast to Aya's arm, causing him to glance down at her out of the side of his eye. She merely kept her eyes focused on the path ahead of them as her and Aya followed behind Yohji.

After at least 15 minutes of walking, they came to a clothing shop for women. It seemed to be a specific one that Yohji had chosen, but neither Aya or the young girl at his arm knew why.

"Yohji, it's good to see you again," an elderly woman greeted.

"You too, I haven't been around in a while," he said, an underlining tone in his voice. "But I brought someone with me today," he told her, bringing Elizabeth forward.

The elder woman clasped her hands together.

"What a stunning young woman," she said, making Elizabeth's face go red.

Elizabeth looked toward Aya for help, feeling as though she may die of embarrassment. She didn't take complements very well and Aya knew that. So, he came forward and wrapped an arm around her to help try and calm her down.

"We came here to find her some clothes. She just got out of the hospital a short while ago and she's starting out new," Aya said, keeping her close for comfort.

"Ah, I see. Well, there's plenty to choose from in this store. I can see why Yohji brought her here then, we have the best clothes in town," she said merrily.

"I…don't need anything special," Elizabeth started, glancing around, "just the basics," she explained.

"Nonsense. Now come on, we brought you here for a reason, so lighten up," Yohji chuckled.

"But-" Aya suddenly cut her off before she could continue.

"You're going to find some nice clothes and try them on, got it?" he directed, raising an eyebrow.

She closed her mouth and nodded her head in defeat, not wanting to argue with him.

"Good," he said, moving his hand to her head and lightly pushing her toward a rack of clothes.

Yohji followed them, helping her pick out some clothes. Both men could tell that she was embarrassed to be here, too embarrassed to try and make herself look pretty.

"You know, girls are supposed to be the ones with good fashion sense," Yohji teased.

She didn't really pay him much attention though, she was looking at something else, something hanging on the wall. Yohji and Aya caught what she was looking at though.

It was a beautiful grey strapless dress top. At the top, thin fabric was sewn together to resemble roses that lined the top rim above the chest. The top itself though mainly made of polyester, looked like shining smooth silk. It came together in the middle and sides, making it look slightly ruffled. Altogether, it was beautiful.

Yohji hid a laugh as she looked away from it, gazing back at the racks of clothes.

"Here, why don't you go try this stuff on first, okay?" Yohji said, leading her to the changing room.

While she was in there, he went over to the elderly woman and asked about the grey top hanging on the wall. She retrieved it for him a minute later, allowing him to take it back towards the dressing room. When he got back, Elizabeth was standing outside the door, eyes looking down at the ground in embarrassment.

She was wearing tight fitted pants and a deep blue flowing long sleeved shirt. The shirt hung at the very edge of her shoulders, showing off her delicate neck and collar bone.

Yohji smiled at her.

"You look beautiful," he said, holding out the top he had just retrieved.

Her eyes immediately swept over it, her face heating up.

"Now, I want you to try this on," he told her, handing it to her.

Once again, she looked towards Aya, only to receive a small nod. With that, she stepped back into the dressing room. Yohji held a pair of slim creamy dress pants over the top of the stall, allowing her to take them. She came out a minute later, fully dressed.

"Wow," Yohji whistled.

Her face went red as a tomato as she stood there biting her lip. She took a chance to raise her eyes toward Aya as she wrung her hands. He chanced a small smile toward her, watching her eyes take a slightly lighter shade.

"Well, aren't you going to say something Aya?" Yohji nudged, his eyes never leaving the beauty in front of him.

"You look beautiful," Aya said simply.

"And just for good measure for the overly modest," Yohji pulled a thin black long sleeve blouse from the rack, placing it on her shoulders. "Perfect. Now, you look just as beautiful, if not more stunning," Yohji announced as he stood behind her, his hands resting on her shoulders along with his head. "You are _definitely_ coming to the club with me tonight," Yohji said happily.

"W-what?" she choked out.

"You heard me, _we_ are going to a club tonight," he said once more.

Her eyes flew to Aya's, pleading him. Unfortunately, he turned his gaze away awkwardly, not knowing what to tell her.

T

"Yohji," Elizabeth whined, clinging to his arm as they stood before the club.

"Don't worry, everything will be fine," he assured her, patting her arm.

From there, he led her inside the building, music blaring around them. The music was so loud it echoed throughout the room, vibrating the floor in the process. She still couldn't believe that she had actually allowed him to drag her out here, but she did nonetheless.

Scanning through the crowd of people, Yohji located the bar, pulling her toward it. There were a few empty stools, allowing them to sit down and have a little bit of space from the people around them.

"So, what do you think?" Yohji asked, raising his voice a bit in order to be heard over the music.

"It's too loud," she whined, looking around her.

No doubt, she would have a headache by the time that she left tonight. In fact, if she didn't know any better, it was already starting to set in.

Yohji turned toward the bar tender, ordering a beer for himself. He turned to Elizabeth in question.

"Water please," she said, staring down at her hands for a moment.

She forced a small smile when she received her water, feeling slightly uncomfortable in this environment.

"So, what do you think about the fact that you're living with us now?" Yohji asked, tipping his beer up to his lips and taking a small swig of it.

"It's nice," she answered simply.

"I see. So, how to you like the fact of being so close to Aya?" he asked slyly, making her face go slightly red.

"What do you mean?" she asked, taking a sip of her water.

"Well, I can see the way he looks at you and how you act around him," he started, taking another drink of his beer. "You know, he's been a lot more tolerable since he met you," he admitted, making her give him a quizzical look.

"What do you mean?"

Yohji sighed, before taking a long drink from his beer, setting it down on the bar.

"Well, he's always been an uptight pain in the ass," he said simply.

Her nose scrunched up slightly.

"Impossible," she muttered, letting out a sigh of her own. "Let's talk about something else?" she suggested, moving her cup around a bit, the water in her cup turning to look like a small ocean of waves.

"You know, you never did tell me why you were in the hospital," Yohji pointed out.

She went quiet for a moment, placing her head down so that her hair covered her eyes.

"I…was in the hospital upon suffering for burns…and other physical injuries," she told him, playing with her fingers.

"How'd you end up with burns? And what other kind of physical injuries?" he asked curiously, taking his time.

"I was in an accident," she said.

Yohji hesitated for a moment before attempting to go further.

"What kind of accident?" he asked slowly, watching her body language carefully.

"An…explosion…" she said, turning in her seat to look away from him and out into the crowd of active people.

Her answer seemed to silence Yohji, allowing her to think of a way to calm her nerves.

_Why…why did he have to ask me _that_ question? _She thought to herself.

"You look fine now though," he said, trying to smile.

He had already realized his mistake in asking the question the very moment that those words had passed through his lips.

_I'd rather not think about this… I'd rather not experience that horrid darkness. _She whimpered in her mind. _Not again._

After about half a hour of silence and trying to get her to dance, Yohji left for the bathroom, leaving her sitting at the bar by herself.

It didn't take very long for problems to arise.

"Why hello there beautiful, how about you join me in a dance," one man asked.

"Or maybe me in bed," another man added to the conversation.

She backed up against the bar in fear.

"P-please just leave me alone?" she asked, trying to keep her attention on her water as though it were the most interesting thing around her.

"Come on honey, I don't bite, much," one laughed as he grabbed her arm.

She tried to pull away, but it did her little good.

"L-let go of me," she pleaded.

"What, you got a boyfriend then?" the other guy asked, awaiting an answer.

Just then, a man came walking up beside them.

"There you are kitten, I've been looking all over for you, you naughty girl you," he laughed, placing his arms around her waist and pulling her against him.

He leaned his head down til their noses were touching, his long orange hair shielding them from prying eyes.

"Just play along," he whispered, loud enough for only her ears to hear.

She stared into his eyes for a moment, searching them for something. After that, she gave a faint nod, wrapping her arms around his neck as she pretended to be returning a kiss. A moment later, he pulled his head back a bit, smiling down at her.

"I'm sorry darling, I lost sight of you and didn't know what to do, so I just came over here and sat down. I hope I didn't worry you too much?" she asked, tilting her head to the side, her arms still wrapped around his neck.

He pulled her closer, leaning down and kissing her forehead. She went slightly red as he did this.

"Such a little Siren you are," he said in a husky voice, leaning down and _kissing _her.

He then turned his gaze toward the two men that stood before them, his eyes narrowing faintly.

"Thank you for keeping my girlfriend _company, _but I think I'll take it from here," he said, before turning back to her and saying, "Let's dance."

He then pulled her toward the center of the room away from the men, pulling her arms up so that they were back around his neck, while his hands went to her hips.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, looking up at the orange haired man.

He was the very same man that she had bumped into at the pet store the other week. She was actually very surprised to see him again.

"Well, I thought that I'd have a little night out. That's not a crime is it?" he spoke into her ear causing her to shiver. "And I must say, you make a rather lovely little actress," he said, a cunning smile on his face.

This only made her face redden.

"Did I mention how stunning you look this evening?" he purred, burying his face in her silky hair.

He took a deep breath, inhaling her scent.

_Amazing, _he thought, pulling back to stare down into her eyes.

"You know, you never told me your name," he said, moving around with her on the dance floor, making them look like a couple in love.

"And you never told me yours," she added, raising a delicate eyebrow.

He chuckled at this.

"My apologies my dear lady, my name is Schuldig," he said, introducing himself to her.

"Elizabeth," she said, leaning forward and resting her head against his chest.

"A lovely name for a lovely lady," he said, resting his chin upon the top of her head.

They stood there for a few more minutes, moving slowly to the music. If one didn't know them, they'd have thought that they truly were a couple. The only person who knew better was Yohji, who was still absent.

_Don't tell me Yohji ran off somewhere… This is so annoying. I should have known that this would happen. I should have just said no, instead of letting him drag me out here just to ditch me for some unknown reason. Or maybe he found a nice girl and decided to flirt with her and leave. _She thought all of this in her head, before letting out a sigh.

"This is nice," she whispered to herself, thinking that the man before her wouldn't hear or know, but he did.

A hour later, they were sitting back up at the bar talking.

"So, did you come here by yourself?" Schuldig asked.

Elizabeth shook her head no.

"No, a friend actually dragged me here, but I don't know where he went," she explained, slight annoyance in her voice.

"Ah, boyfriend then?" he assumed, trying to hide the amused look on his face as her mind went spastic.

"Hell no," she said in embarrassment. "That man is nothing but a flirt," she expressed.

_Besides…he's more like a brother anyway. _She thought to herself.

"Ah, _that_ kind of guy. He must be quite a ladies man then," he mused, catching her attention.

"You have no idea," she groaned, running a hand through her hair as she yawned.

Schuldig sat there watching her for a few minutes as she stared blankly out at the crowd. He knew that she really didn't want to be there, the music pounding her eardrums and tousling her nerves. It was giving her a headache, while the rowdy thoughts from the numerous people within this one place where giving him one.

_I can barely tell my thoughts from theirs. _He thought, discreetly rubbing his temple with his middle and forefinger.

As he did this, he watched a few men start walking towards them, their thoughts deceiving them. Upon seeing this, Schuldig stood slowly. He wrapped his arm around Elizabeth's waist, pulling her up beside him.

"Time to go," he whispered, alerting her to the issue.

They made quick work in exiting the club, quietly making their way down and across the street towards the park.

"What's going on?" she asked quietly, staying close to his side.

"We're being followed," he said simply as though it were the most normal thing in the world, though there was a slight edge to his voice as he said it.

"Hello there," a man said, coming out of the shadows.

Schuldig pulled Elizabeth closer to his side as a few more men appeared, some having weapons drawn. This made her cringe in fear. Schuldig kept her close, slowly reaching his hand into the inside of his coat near his chest, leaving his hand to hover there.

"We know who you are," one man said as he pointed his gun at Elizabeth for reference.

"What do you want?" Schuldig asked calmly, already knowing what they wanted.

"The girl of course," he said, turning toward his men, "Although, Kenji never specified alive or dead," he chuckled, causing Elizabeth to start shaking. "Now…" the sound of guns loading where heard, "say good night."

The next thing Elizabeth knew, guns were being fired around her, a bullet flying right passed her head. She let out a cry as she clung to Schuldig in fear as he tried to protect her, pulling out a silver handgun of his own and firing.

One man managed to get a hold of her, pulling her against them, but moments later got a bullet between the eyes. Blood painted her face as he fell to the ground, blood pooling around him and coating the bottoms of her shoes.

"Run," Schuldig ordered, "Run home and don't look back."

As she ran off, Schuldig turned to another man laying on the ground, pulling him up by the front of his shirt.

"Now, I want you to tell me everything you know about this Kenji person," he ordered, a high level of authority in his voice, mixed with deadly steel.

**Okay, yet another unseen chapter. I TRULY hope that everyone enjoyed this chapter? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me to let me know what you think? Constructive critisism is always welcome. Thanks everyone and remember to check out my other stories for Vincent Valentine, Gambit, Kyo, Folken, Jareth, Scar and MORE.**


	8. Annoying Human

**Redo Knight Hunters**

**Chapter 8**

**Annoying Human**

It was around midnight when the guys finally got back, sounds of their footsteps echoing faintly in the flower shop. In their minds, all seemed fine and normal, nothing was out of place. Although, even in the dim light from the moon reflecting into the shop, Aya could tell something was wrong. Upon turning on the lights, he found the remnants of bloody shoeprints. Seeing this, he threw his coat and sword down on the counter, rushing upstairs.

"Elizabeth?" he called halfway up the steps. "Elizabeth!" he shouted as he burst into her room.

As he looked around frantically, he found nothing. It wasn't until he noticed the crying coming from his room that he rushed through the conjoining doorway, stopping dead in his tracks.

"Elizabeth…" he whispered.

She sat against the wall near his bed, her knees pulled tightly to her chest as she buried her face in her knees, her hands clutching her head as she cried. She hadn't truly started crying until she had gotten to Aya's room, the shock of everything setting in full swing.

"Elizabeth…?" he called lightly, slowly making his way over to her, before dropping to his knees in front of her.

He reached out a hand, carefully placing it on her shoulder as he pulled her toward him. At that, she clung to him, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist. She cried into his shirt as she sat there, Aya bringing his arms around her and holding her close. He had seen a glimpse of the blood on her face as the tears fell, stinging her eyes and staining her face. Although, her face wasn't the only thing stained with blood, it covered her hands and clothes as well. At this point, her clothes and shoes were ruined.

_What happened to her? _He thought to himself, shocked at finding her like this.

After a few minutes, the others slowly made their way into the room, stopping at the door. They couldn't believe what they were seeing.

"What happened?" Omi whispered, quietly making his way over toward Aya.

"I don't know," Aya said curtly, rubbing Elizabeth's back in an attempt to comfort her.

She just continued to cry, the nights previous events continuing to play in her mind, driving her to the brink of pure insanity. She was so scared, she didn't know what to do, save for stay where she was and cry her heart out.

"Yohji, go get some washcloths. Ken, go grab a pair of scissors from downstairs. Omi, grab the sweater and sweatpants from her bed," Aya ordered, watching everyone leave the room for a moment.

As they sat there, Aya could feel Elizabeth's hands curling around the tight material of his black sleeveless shirt, just trying to grab hold of something for comfort. Although, she still held tightly to Aya as though he were her lifeline, the only thing that kept her safe and breathing ragged breaths of air.

Aya turned his head once everyone was back in the room. Yohji stood there holding various washcloths in his hands, some wet, some dry. Ken held a pair of scissors, stepping toward the two. Omi, he held the clothes in his arms, sitting back down at Aya's side. From there, Aya pulled Elizabeth back. She resisted the action, trying desperately to cling to him, tears clouding her vision. All that the boys around her could do, was coo softly, trying to hush her. Eventually, they managed to get her to stay still, but she still never moved or said a word. She just sat there, her fingers curling under the edge of the glove on Aya's left hand, still trying to hold onto something.

"Yohji…" Aya held his hand out for the washcloth.

After that, he gently dabbed it against her face, feeling her flinch almost at the contact. Aya frowned at this. She was so scared, she seemed as though she weren't truly in their realm of reality. Still, he continued to clean her face of the blood, while Yohji gently cleaned off her shaky hands. All that Ken and Omi could do was sit back and watch, watch her sad and shaken form as they all tried to help.

_What are we going to do? _Omi thought to himself, eyes continuing to glance back and forth between Elizabeth and the rest of them.

He had never truly seen anyone so shaken before, actually he had, but not one as innocent as she was. No, never had he _truly_ seen someone so scared. Shota, the little boy they had saved before, he had been scared, but at least he was still in his right mind. She on the other hand was not.

"Everything's going to be alright," Yohji cooed, rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand.

In a way, she felt like glaring at him, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Yes, if he hadn't ditched her for whatever reason it was, then she never would have ended up in the situation that she ended up in. Although, she knew that she couldn't blame him for this.

As she sat there, Aya began cleaning her neck of the blood, gently whipping it from her skin. Even as he did this, a few tears escaped her eyes. At this point, Aya couldn't take it anymore and pulled her back into an embrace, placing a hand on top of her head. He held her close, just holding onto her and comforting her as she began to cry again.

"What do I do with these?" Ken asked quietly, holding up the scissors.

Aya held out his hand, taking them from him.

"Yohji, help me get her blouse off," Aya said, looking down at the long sleeved blouse.

Eventually, they managed to pull it off of her and sooth her ragged breaths. This gave them the opportunity that they desperately needed, allowing them to cut the clothes from her body and place the clean sweater over her. Aya was the one that managed to pull the sweatpants on her, moving her onto his lap to do so. From there, she fell against him as he wrapped his arms around her waist, allowing her to close her eyes. Soon, she fell asleep from the exhaustion, freeing her mind from everything around her.

At this point, everyone was at a loss for words. The only thing they could do was stand around and watch as she slept, her head falling against Aya's strong chest, and her hand wrapped around the top of his left hand.

"Aya, what are we going to do?" Omi whispered, glancing between him and Elizabeth.

"I don't know," Aya said quietly, never letting loose his hold on Elizabeth.

"Hey Yohji, didn't you take her to a club?" Ken questioned in suspicion.

Everything became silent once Ken said this, Aya's hand slowly curling into a tight fist.

"Oh, um, yeah I did. Uh…well you see, I kind of left her there. I mean I figured she'd have a better time without me hovering over her shoulder the whole time. I mean, it's not like I could get her to dance with me or anything, it's not as if I'm a bad dancer," Yohji just rambled on nervously, carefully watching Aya's reaction.

"Yohji…" Aya called quietly, motioning him over.

Against his better judgment, Yohji slowly walked over to him, only to be grabbed roughly by the collar of his shirt. Aya then placed his lips beside Yohji's ear and whispered harshly.

"I'll deal with you later."

That's all that it took for Yohji to clear the room of his presence, leaving the other four occupants to themselves.

"So…Yohji just left her there? A club no less?" Omi questioned quietly in disbelief.

"Apparently," Ken said, glancing around at everyone.

"But what I don't get is why he left her there," Omi said, looking over at Elizabeth's sleeping form. "I mean yeah, we had a mission, but he could have at least brought her back here first," he said.

Aya groaned slightly, his eyes turning toward Omi.

"Don't give me anymore reasons to hit him Omi," Aya said in annoyance as he tried to get up.

Omi rushed to help, grabbing hold of Elizabeth's legs and helping to pick her up. After sitting a pillow behind his back, Aya leaned back on his bed a bit, Elizabeth's arms still clinging around his waist. Omi had stretched her legs out a bit for her, preventing them from becoming stiff and painful when she finally woke up.

"Get some rest now," Aya said as he looked over at Omi, watching thereafter as he bowed and left the room.

It was then, that Aya noticed Ran's disappearance, craning his neck to look around.

"Ran? Here boy," he called quietly, letting his right hand hang down from the bed as he clicked his fingers.

Moments later, he felt something touch his hand, before feeling a shift on the bed.

"There you are. Where have you been hiding all this time?" Aya asked quietly.

As a response, Ran went to the edge of the bed and looked down, his tail twitching as he let out a small meow.

"You've been hiding under my bed all this time?" Aya asked, raising a thin eyebrow at the little cat who turned and meowed at him. "Great…" Aya muttered, turning his attention back to Elizabeth as she continued to sleep quietly against him, her face still stained from the countless tears she had cried.

T

A knock on the door alerted Yohji of his visitor, making him slightly nervous.

"Who is it?" Yohji called from the spot on his bed.

"It's just me," Omi said, causing Yohji to let out a sigh of relief.

"Come on in," Yohji said, watching as Omi opened the door and stepped in. "For a moment there, I actually thought that you were Aya," Yohji admitted, running a hand through his hair.

"That doesn't surprise me," Omi said, leaning against the wall.

"I guess you're here to question me, huh?" Yohji asked, preparing himself.

"Look, all I want to know is _why_ you left her there by herself," Omi said, pushing off the wall and coming to stand before Yohji. "Our main mission is to protect her and watch over her, so why?" he asked.

"Okay, you want the truth Omi?" Yohji asked, watching his young friend nod. "Look, when I got the call about the mission, I went back to get her. The only problem was, I couldn't find her. I looked all over the club, I swear," Yohji said. "I just figured that she got annoyed and left to go back here," he admitted quietly.

"I believe you, but you're going to have a hard time getting Aya to see it," Omi told him.

Yohji just groaned, running a hand through his hair.

"Why do you think I'm dreading tomorrow?" Yohji grumbled.

T

After everyone had finally fallen asleep, Ran escaped through his little _kitty_ door and went outside. From there, he jumped up onto the railing, looking out at the buildings around him. He stared sourly at the roof of the building he was in, staring at a shadowy figure that stood watching him. Ran meowed before hissing at the shadow, his fur raising to points and his ears flattening. He only received a chuckle in response.

"Such a curious little kitty," came the voice of a man.

_Annoying human_, Ran thought to himself before jumping down off the railing and walking back through his kitty door.

Once inside, he jumped up onto the bed, curling up against his master and her red haired companion.

**ANOTHER all new never before seen chapter. I hope that everyone enjoyed it? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me, I'd love to see what everyone thought. Thanks everyone.**


	9. Running From Nightmares

**Redo Knight Hunters**

**Chapter 9**

**Running From Nightmares**

It had taken two whole days before Elizabeth was finally comfortable enough to leave the room. Each night, she had curled up at the end of Aya's bed, feeling as though that were the only safe place for her to stay. Each night, Aya would pull her from her spot as she slept and into his arms, holding her protectively through the night.

After that, she finally started to help around the shop again. Like the boys had drawn in various girls, Elizabeth had been drawing the attention of many men. As a result, they would stand outside the shop just staring at her, fawning over her as the girls would do to them.

She tried her very best not to let on that things were bothering her, but to her fellow florists, it was all too obvious. Especially, since they themselves had become pros at hiding their true selves. It wasn't until the men actually started making physical contact with her that problems started.

All four boys watched as her watering can slipped from her hands, clattering loudly on the smooth floor that it made contact with. Her hands shook as she pulled away from the men around her, fear clouding her mind as the events of her attack came to mind, scaring her.

"Hey! Can't you see you're bothering her?" Yohji exclaimed, stepping between her and the men.

The men complained as they tried to reach out to her, but she just got up and ran, pushing through the crowd of people as she ran from the shop.

"Elizabeth!" Omi called out, but it was no use, she just kept running.

Omi tried to go after her, but the girls just kept getting in his way, the same for the others as well.

T

Elizabeth just kept running. She didn't know where she was going, but she didn't care. The images that played through her mind scared her like living in a never ending nightmare. She just wanted to run away and make them disappear. She wanted to disappear, but she also yearned for something that was familiar, anything that was familiar to her. She longed for the comfort of anything that would sooth her trembling heart.

_Make it stop! I just want it to stop! _She cried in her head as she fell to her knees upon grass.

When she looked around, she found herself by the riverbank, the sound of the water slowly bringing comfort to her ears. The feeling was refreshing, soothing, calming. Though the tears still came out of frustration and fear. She yearned for a friend to hold her.

"Elizabeth?" a voice called, causing her to look up and turn in the person's direction.

She was shocked upon seeing a certain green and white clad man with radiating orange hair.

"Schuldig?" she choked out, staring at him.

He smiled at her as he came closer, taking his leisurely time with each carefully placed step that he took, his hand tucked away in the pockets of his trench coat.

"I see you managed to remember my name. I'm flattered," he chuckled, giving a slight bow. "Out for a little evening run?" he asked with a teasing notion, causing her to glare at him. "All you had to do was say no," he laughed, crouching down in front of her.

He let out a sigh as he touched her face, leaning in til their noses were touching and her face was red.

"I'm sorry, you must think I'm a jerk right now," he said, feigning hurt, staring her straight in the eyes. "I apologize, I've had a rather off day today," he explained, watching her facial expression change from one of annoyance, to one of understanding.

Satisfied with her change, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against her forehead. She didn't understand why he did it, but he did.

"I take it that yours has been the same?" he inquired, receiving a nod in response.

_Get close to her, gain her trust, _he thought, knowing that in a way, he already had.

_I wish Aya were here,_ came the fleeting thought in her mind.

"How are your friends?" Schuldig asked, sitting down beside her, leaning back in the grass a bit on his hands.

"Fine I guess," she said quietly, bringing her knees to her chest.

She was tired from running and felt like simply curling up and going to sleep.

"How's that job of yours?" he asked, glancing over at her.

"I never mentioned anything about a job," she pointed out, looking at him suspiciously.

"Well, I've gone by that flower shop a few times and seen you working in there, so I just figured you worked there," Schuldig admitted.

She seemed to process this for a moment, before turning to look up at the cloudy sky. It seemed to mimic her emotions at times, which really made her wonder about things. Then again, when it rains, people can never truly see you crying. They never know because it's covered by the rain.

"It's fine," she stated, not really wanting to talk about it, for she knew that it would only bring her to ruin again.

_Guys just won't leave me alone at the shop._

"You know, I've noticed that you've been getting a lot of attention as of late," Schuldig spoke slowly, pretending to pick his words carefully as he spoke to her.

The moment those words escaped his lips, she froze, hands curling around her pants leg. She didn't notice the faint smirk on his face as a few rain drops started to fall and soak into her hair.

"It must get…overwhelming I'm sure? So annoying and uncomfortable…" he continued on, his face now inches from hers, his words seeming to echo in her mind.

He drew closer, placing a hand on her cheek, his thumb trailing over her lips. Raindrops caressed her as she sat there, a light rain starting to pour now, a single drop painting her lip.

"I can take care of all of that if you'll let me," he whispered into her ear, before brushing his nose against her cheek.

She held her breath as he did all of this, but barely, feeling the faint heat slowly creep into her cheeks; a sense of consciousness slowly leaving. His lips hovered mere millimeters above hers, her eyes slowly clouding over as though becoming entranced.

"Schuldig…" she whispered, almost completely lost within herself as she sat there in front of him.

Just as he was about to close the gap, he was interrupted by a yell, causing a frown to appear on his face.

"Elizabeth!"

That's all it took to snap her out of her trance, leaving Schuldig sitting there in annoyance.

"Aya!" she smiled, quickly jumping to her feet and running over to him.

She threw her arms around him happily, a small smile slowly forming on his face. It soon disappeared though upon seeing Schuldig. Quickly, Aya weaved an arm around Elizabeth's waist in a protective manner as he stared at Schuldig, trying his best to hide how livid he now was upon seeing the orange haired man in front of him.

"What are you doing here?" Aya asked the man in front of him.

"It's nice to see you again too _Aya_," Schuldig said almost playfully, coming to stand before him.

Elizabeth looked between the two of them curiously.

"You two know each other?" she asked, glancing back and forth between Schuldig and Aya, her two friends.

Before Aya could utter a single word, Schuldig spoke up.

"Acutally," he began, coming closer and throwing an arm over Aya's shoulders, "We're old buddy's," Schuldig said, a convincing smile on his face. "Right, _Abyssinian_?" he whispered quietly into Aya's ear.

Aya let out a grunt, shoving Schuldig off of him in repulsion.

"Stay away from her," Aya whispered harshly, pulling Elizabeth along with him.

She didn't know what was going on, a look of pure confusion present on her face. Aya sighed and turned to look at her in an attempt of explanation.

"He's annoying," he said, quickly making his way up the small hill, dragging her behind him.

She turned around to look at Schuldig, finding a friendly smile painted on his face as he gave her a short wave goodbye with the flick of his hand, his lips mouthing, "See you soon".

_Bye Schuldig_, she said in her head, knowing how useless it was.

Little did she know, it wasn't useless at all, and that a cunning smile appeared on his face as the rain continued to pour down.

"Aya!" she yelped as she slipped on a slick bit of wet grass, falling beside him. He quickly helped her up, taking her hands in his.

"Careful," he whispered, pulling her to his side as the rain pelted down on them mercilessly.

She gave him a small smile, hugging his side as they walked, shivering from the cold. Seeing this, he held her close, trying to keep her as warm as possible.

"I'm sorry for running off like that," she apologized, looking down as they walked.

Aya shook his head as he let out a sigh, bringing them to stand by a building.

"No, it's alright," he said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "I…should have kept a better eye on you. In fact, you shouldn't have even been back at work yet. It's only been a week, but I can tell, it's still bothering you isn't it?" he asked, watching as she backed away slightly, not wanting to admit her insecurity.

"Aya…" she whispered, her eyes watering as she slid down the wall of the building.

Aya came and knelt down in front of her, placing his hand on her cheek, his thumb moving over it gently.

She could feel the tears in her eyes as she looked up at him, thoughts flying through her mind a mile a minute. She didn't want to admit that it was bothering her so much, she didn't want to look weak, she didn't want to let anyone down.

"The nightmares…still haunt you," Aya whispered quietly, whipping her eyes ever so softly as her tears mixed with the rain.

If it weren't for her sniffles and gasping breath, he wouldn't have even known that she was crying, due to the rain that poured down in waves. As he looked down at her, he knew that he had changed for the better. He wasn't as cold anymore when it came to others, especially not her. He was a bit more tolerant when it came to his _friends_. He was softer and gentler when he spoke. He was more consideration and less pent on kill Takatori. He was becoming _human_ again. Aya was even starting to talk a bit more than he used too, at least with her anyway, but that's neither here nor there.

"Look," he placed his other hand on her other cheek, turning her to look at him more, "you don't have to hide yourself… You can always come to me and I'll be here, okay?" he whispered. "Don't hide from me," he breathed, placing his forehead against hers.

She just sat there, tears falling faster in numbers. She then wrapped her arms around him, crying into the front of his shirt already damp shirt.

"I-I'm sorry…" she choked out, felling him wrap his arms around her in an embrace, shielding her from the pouring rain..

"Even if I'm asleep, all you need do is wake me," he whispered into her damp hair.

He could feel her shiver in his arms as tears fell from her eyes. She was getting cold, her grey shirt clinging to her small form, her hands twitching at the touch of the rain. She was so cold.

T

Aya walked back, Elizabeth in his arms as he carried her. Her head resting against his chest, resting on his heart as she listened to its rhythmic beat as it put her to sleep. She was still cold as the rain poured down on them in heavy waves, nearly knocking Aya down, but being in Aya's arms gave her a bit of warmth and shelter for which she cherished.

As Aya continued to walk forward, his mind went to other things, thinking things over a bit more. He knew that he'd have to keep a closer eye on her now, even if it meant keeping her in his room. Granted, that was going a bit far, but maybe just for a few more days. A few more days just to make sure that she's truly alright.

Nodding his head, he continued forward, rounding the corner of the shop. He shifted the weight in his arms as he opened the door and stepping through the door. The moment he had the door closed and stepped in, he slipped, sliding and falling to the floor with Elizabeth still in his arms. He slipped a few feet, running into a few random pots that lay on the floor.

"Yohji!" Aya yelled in frustration as he slowly tried to sit up, his hand slipping under the pressured weight that he placed upon it, causing him to fall again.

He growled in annoyance as he laid there, hearing footsteps running down the stairs.

"Heh, hey Aya, what happened to you?" Yohji asked, scratching the back of his head.

Aya just glared at him while Elizabeth groaned. When they had fallen, she'd knocked her head against Aya's chin, sending a spark of pain down her spine.

"Just help her up," Aya groaned, holding his chin.

Aya helped her move over a bit, allowing Yohji to try and help her up. Although, when Yohji tried, he slipped and fell. This all resulted in him landing on Aya, while Elizabeth landed on Yohji.

"Yohji…" both Elizabeth and Aya groaned together.

"Ken! Omi!" Yohji yelled, moving his legs off Aya before he had them pounded by an incoming fist.

Moments later, Ken and Omi came running down the steps, a humorous look on their faces.

"You left the hose on again, didn't you Yohji?" Ken asked, tapping his foot on the floor, already knowing the answer to his question.

Without even looking at him, Ken went over and helped Elizabeth up, being careful of his footing. She fell against him tiredly as he stood with her. Next up was Aya, then Yohji.

Not wanting to fall again, Aya took his shoes off before glaring at Yohji. Yohji just laughed nervously. Before Aya could do anything though, Ken and Omi got his attention, motioning to Elizabeth.

"I'll take her," Aya said, moving over and taking her tired for into his arms again like before.

Aya then looked back at everyone, glancing at Ken and Omi.

"Can you make some soup?" he asked, looking back down at Elizabeth. "She's cold," he said, moving up the stairs carefully in his bare socks.

Once he got up the stairs and into the room, he placed her down on her bed, before going over and grabbing her normal slept attire for her.

"Here, get changed and then I'll come back in, okay?" he asked, placing a hand on her head.

She nodded her head tiredly, waiting til he walked back into his room all of the way, the sheet that hung between the rooms hiding her from his view. She then made tentative work of changing her clothes, dropping her wet ones onto the floor in the corner. It was then that Ken walked into her room to check on things, only to find her in the middle of getting dressed. She let out a shriek, holding the orange sweater against herself in order to cover herself. Aya ran in a moment later, only to have his face turn red in anger at Ken and embarrassment toward Elizabeth.

"S-s-sorry!" Ken cried out, running right back out of the room and closing the door behind him.

Mean while, Aya placed a hand over his eyes, sliding down the wall behind him. Doing so hid his view of her as she tossed the sweater over her head and pulled the sweatpants on over her legs. Afterwards, she knelt down in front of Aya, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you…dressed now?" he asked quietly, not removing his hand from his eyes.

As a response, she took hold of his hand and pulled it away from his eyes, placing it against her cheek for warmth still faintly heated cheek. He opened his eyes to find that hers had closed, blocking her view of him.

"I'll take that as a yes," he whispered, looking at the back of his hand that rested against her cheek, the warmth from it nearly lulling her to sleep.

He let escape a faint laugh from his throat as he looked at her, the gentle expression on her face nearly overwhelming. It was hard to miss the look of exhaustion on her face though as she sat there. He opened his mouth to say something to her, but instead, the door opened to reveal Omi.

"I brought the soup," Omi said with a smile on his face as he looked at the two of them. "I thought that I'd make one for you too Aya, I hope you don't mind?" he laughed, walking toward them.

Slowly, Elizabeth pulled away from Aya, her eyes lighting up ever so slightly as she looked at the soup in Omi's hands. He held two cups of soup, one for her and one for Aya, and if she was right due to her sense of smell then it was tomato soup.

"I made it nice and creamy," Omi said, handing one of the cups to Elizabeth, before handing Aya his.

"Thank you, Omi," she said softly, carefully bringing the cup to her lips and taking a sip of it.

She couldn't help but to smile as it ran down her throat, warming her insides. She let out a grateful sigh upon drinking more of it, blowing on it every now and then.

Omi nodded his head, before leaving the room and going back to his own, running to avoid the pelting rain.

"Aya?" Elizabeth whispered, scooting over beside Aya.

"Hm?" Aya looked down at her, moving over slightly so that she could sit properly.

"Do you…ever have nightmares?" she asked quietly.

He looked at her for a moment, a strange emotion lacing his eyes.

"Why do you ask?" he said offhandedly, turning his cup up and emptying its contents into his mouth.

"I…" she looked at him, before a small smile turned upward onto her lips, a laugh threatening to escape. "You have a little bit of…" she raised her hand up, bringing it to the corner of his lips, her fingertips brushing the edge of them as she smiled. "There we go, all gone," she smiled, pulling her hand away with a yawn.

Afterwards, she went back to her soup, downing the rest of it. She then sat her cup down, wrapping her arms around herself. Aya saw this and placed an arm around her shoulders, pulling her towards him a bit, and allowing her to lean on him as she yawned.

"To answer your question…yes, I do," he said quietly.

This made her look up at him with curiosity. He glanced down at her for a moment, taking in the look in her eyes.

"Everyone does, we just don't like to admit it," he stated, before turning his eyes to the cat that was walking toward them.

Ran meowed as he rubbed up against Aya's leg, longing for attention. Aya obliged by petting him, his hand traveling from Ran's head, all the way to the tip of his tail. He then came to lay upon Aya's lap, nudging Elizabeth's hand. He meowed again when she scratched under his chin and behind his ear, loving the feeling of his master's warm and gentle touch.

"Do you…ever find that you're stuck with them daily?" her inquiry was soft, nearly inaudible as she closed her eyes, her head taking refuge on his shoulder.

"What do you mean?" Aya asked quietly.

He could tell that it was uncomfortable for her to talk about this, just as it was for him, even though she didn't realize it on his part. She was trying to come out of her comfort zone a bit more and for that he was grateful.

"Do you…ever feel…like they follow your every move? I don't know…like they follow you just to spite you…?" she asked quietly, not completely telling everything.

Although, he had a faint inkling of what it was about, even without her saying much. It sounded like she was speaking of her parents, her _adoptive_ parents. It was then that he thought of his sister. Whenever he would think of her, the events of that night would replay in his head. He would see her smiling face, just begging him for the simple dangling earrings to be her birthday present. The smile of joy on her face when he agreed. Then…the image of his parents laying dead on the living room floor, the bomb ticking away on the shelf. He still remembered clearly, yelling for her to run, before the bomb exploded. He remembered laying beneath the rubble and then yelling out for her when he saw her get hit by the car.

"Aya?" Elizabeth called his name softly, bringing him out of his thoughts.

He shook his head slightly for a moment, before looking down at her. There was a sadness in her eyes as she stared at him, now knowing the answer to her question.

**Okay everyone, once again another never before seen chapter. The next chapter will be part of one of the old one's. I hope that everyone enjoyed this chapter. Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE? I always love hearing what people have to say about my stories. Don't forget to check out my PROFILE for my other STORIES. FINAL FANTASY 7, FRUITS BASKET, FMA, ESCAFLOWNE, X-MEN, and MORE. Thanks everybody! :)**


	10. Kidnapped

**Redo Knight Hunters**

**Chapter 10**

**Kidnapped**

The next day, business was slow. The rain had been pouring down for hours, still holding strong from the previous night. When Elizabeth had gotten up, the first thing she did was take a shower, a shower to hide her sickness. She didn't want the guys to know that she was sick, for she felt as though she weren't pulling her weight around the shop. If they knew that she were sick, they'd send her right back to bed, no questions asked.

"Hey Omi, how many deliveries do we have so far today?" Yohji asked as he drank his cup of coffee.

It was around 1:30 at this point in the day.

"I think 5 right now, since no one wants to come out in the pouring rain to pick up flowers," Omi chuckled, looking down at the short list.

"Well, do we have all 5 arrangements put together yet?" Yohji asked as he leaned against the table.

Omi nodded his head, looking over at Aya. Aya brought the finished arrangement that he had done and placed it on the table.

"Who's going to take them?" Omi asked, looked around at everyone.

At that, Elizabeth placed her watering can down at came over to the table.

"I will," she volunteered.

The guys just looked at her hesitantly, not really sure what to say.

"Oh, come on, I can do it," she said, turning her gaze toward Aya. "Come on Aya, please? Let me take the deliveries for once? Please? I'll even take Ran with me," she said, trying her best to persuade him.

"You're going to take the cat with you?" Ken asked skeptically.

"You can't be serious? No cat's going to go out in the rain," Yohji told her.

Just as Yohji said that, Ran walked over and jumped up on the table, meowing at Aya. Everyone stared at the cat in disbelief, save for Elizabeth and Aya.

"Fine," Aya muttered, turning around and going back to some other flowers.

"Thank you!" Elizabeth cried, running over and hugging him from behind.

The others laughed at the scene before them, watching Aya's expression as he went slightly red. She then let go of him and ran over to Omi.

"Hey Omi, can you help me load the scooter real quick?" she asked, picking Ran up in her arms.

"Sure. Come on Ken," Omi said, picking up the arrangement on the table and walking out back with Elizabeth.

Ken followed behind then, picking up two of the arrangements that sat on the counter. While they were outside, Yohji walked over to Aya, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"You can't seriously be allowing her to go by herself are you?" he whispered.

"Just leave it be Yohji," Aya said, picking up one of the arrangements that laid on the floor.

Yohji sighed, picking up the last one and following Aya out back to the others. All of the arrangements were then loading into the back carrier of the scooter, the small door closing and holding them in place. Aya then handed Elizabeth a small pouch holding the receipt book in it, along with a few coins and bills for needed change. She smiled at Aya as she tied the little pouch to Ran's collar, her phone in the small phone pocket on the side of her leg. She was ready to go.

"Here's the addresses and list of arrangements," Omi said, handing her the small sheet of paper.

"And…" Yohji came forward, leaning over her as he reached underneath the driving consul , pulling open a small compartment. "Here's the map in case you get lost or need directions," Yohji teased, watching her face heat up slightly in embarrassment.

"Stop teasing me," she said, shoving his arm slightly.

He just laughed at her, wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug and ruffling her hair. She let out a squeal as he did this, causing everyone to laugh save for Aya. Though Aya did let out a low chuckle.

"Yohji!" she groaned in embarrassment, wriggling free from his hold.

After that, she straightened her shirt and jacket out, pulling her jacket back down over the very top of her pants a bit. She then checked her watch.

"Okay, I need to get going now. I'll see you guys in a couple hours, alright?" she smiled, getting on the scooter after she placed her helmet on.

Ran jumped up, sitting directly behind her in the open space that we normally used for a second passenger. He meowed happily as he looked at Aya, wiggling his nose slightly. Before Aya could even say anything, Elizabeth sped off into the pouring rain, heading for her first stop.

T

Elizabeth's first stop was a man by the name of Jin Masako. He had called in for an arrangement of flowers for his lovely wife Nanako. In fact, the man had come into the flower shop a few times since she's been working there. He was always very nice and polite around Elizabeth, making her smile. Jin was far more respectable than most of the guys that came into the shop. He'd even brought his 6 year old daughter Yukina in a couple times, allowing her to help pick out flowers for her mother. Yukina was such an adorable little girl in Elizabeth's eyes.

The arrangement that she was delivering was made up of mainly beautiful yellow Blazing Star flowers. She had actually suggested these to Jin, since it was for his anniversary, and knew that his wife would love them.

She smiled as she pulled up to the small house, going to the back of the scooter and pulling out the off white vase with delicate gold swirls on it. Not wanting her furry little friend to be out in the rain for too long, she told him to stay put as she walked to the door. She rang the doorbell as she stood there holding the vase in her arms, a smile on her face as the door opened.

"Ah, Ms. Mitsua, so nice to see you," Jin greeted, brushing his shoulder length black hair out of his face.

Normally, he had it pulled back in a loose ponytail, but since he was at home at the moment he left it down.

"Hello Mr. Masako, it's nice to see you too," she replied, shifting the vase in her arms.

"Please, call me Jin," he said, turning his head to the sound of running feet.

"Liza! Liza!" a little girl with short black hair and blue eyes yelled.

The little girl wrapped her arms around Elizabeth's legs tightly, nearly making her fall if Jin hadn't steadied her.

"Careful Yukina, we wouldn't want to ruin Mommy's flowers now would we?" Jin chuckled as he knelt down next to his daughter.

"Sorry Liza," Yukina said, apologizing to her.

"It's okay. In fact, I have something for you," Elizabeth smiled, turning her head back to the scooter. "Ran, grab the Sunflower," she called, watching the little cat grab it from the seat and run toward them through the rain.

"I see you have a little helper with you," Jin commented.

"Yep, he's definitely a little trooper," she said with a smile, handing the vase over to him.

They watched as Ran dropped the Sunflower on Yukina's foot.

"Now, say hello Ran," Elizabeth said, smiling as he meowed a hello.

Jin and Yukina laughed at this, a smile on their faces as Elizabeth picked the little cat up, scratching under his chin affectionately.

"This is the little guy that you saw at the flower shop the last time," she told them.

"He's a smart little fellow isn't he?" Jin asked.

Elizabeth nodded her head, placing the cat up on her shoulders, which he happily sat on.

"Now, if you could," she pulled out the little receipt book from the pouch on Ran's collar.

Jin smiled as he stepped back in and placed the vase on the table, coming back out a moment later. He then took the small book and signed where he was shown, before pulling the money out and handing it to her.

"There you go," he said kindly, giving her a bit more for her trouble.

"Thank you Sir," she smiled.

"Come now, I said to call me Jin. Sir and Mr. make a man like me sound old," he said with a laugh.

Elizabeth laughed with him as she nodded.

"Alright Jin, thank you," she smiled.

"There we go!" he chuckled, turning to his daughter. "Now, say good bye Yukina, and say thank you for the flower," he told his daughter.

"Bye Liza. Thank you for the Sunflower!" she smiled happily, holding the Sunflower in front of her face.

"You are very welcome Yukina. I'll see you two later," Elizabeth called as she ran back to the scooter in the rain, placing her helmet back on and waving to them.

They waved back, right before she turned the scooter on, Yukina now sitting on Jin's shoulders with the Sunflower in her tiny hands.

_Such a nice family…_

With that, she drove off to her next delivery, her mind still wavering on the Masako family.

T

"Okay, two more left and then we can go home," Elizabeth said as her and Ran sat on the scooter eating a small bit of food.

She had stopped at a small shop and picked up a snack for them. In all reality, they were sharing a small ham sandwich with Ran was diligently trying to steal. This made her laugh as she watched him, bringing her hand up to keep the sandwich away from him.

"Hey, let me at least get a bite or two in before you go stealing it you little goober," she laughed, bringing it back down and biting into it.

A moment later, Ran jumped up and pulled out a fourth of the ham, letting it fall to the seat as he gobbled it up happily.

"Hey!" she laughed, ruffling his fur slightly. "Sneaky little cat."

Once they were done, she headed out again, going along an older street on the map. After about five minutes, she made it to a little apartment complex. Looking down at the name for a Miss Akane Matsuo. Her order was that of red, black centered Poppies, delicate pink and black centered Heather's, purple and white Lisianthus', and some Columbine mixes as well. It was a really pretty combination of flowers all put together in a black and gold vase.

"Come on Ran!" Elizabeth called as she ran up the steps and out of the rain, Ran following right behind her.

She was glad that they were sheltered and out of the rain. In fact, when Elizabeth got home, she knew that she'd have to change into a set of dry clothes. Not to mention, throw a towel on top of Ran and give him a good rub down. She laughed at this thought as she counted the apartment numbers.

"Here we go, apartment number 26," she stated, before knocking on the door.

A few moments later, the door opened, revealing a young girl with short brown hair and grayish blue eyes.

"Oh, hello there. Thank you for bringing me my flowers," she smiled, taking them off of Elizabeth's hands.

"You're welcome. Now, if you could just sign this?" she asked, pulling the small receipt book from Ran's collar and handing it to her.

Elizabeth watched as she signed it, before handing her the money.

"Thank you Miss, have a nice day," Elizabeth said, before running down the hall. "Come on Ran, one more stop and then we're done," she smiled happily, jumping onto the scooter and placing her helmet on.

T

Her last delivery was a mixed arrangement of pink and white Hawthorn flowers. She had read in a book once that there was a legend about the Hawthorn tree being the home of fairies. It was a nice little thought that had made her smile while she was in the hospital. It was from one of the books that Aya had given her, but she couldn't remember the name of the book. The name of the person that had ordered this batch was a man by the name of Kazue Tanaka. She'd never heard this man before, but hadn't said anything about it really. Probably just a new customer that she had yet to meet. She sighed as she continued forward to the warehouse division. She found it strange that that's where the order was to be sent, but then again, she figured that the guy worked a lot or something. The only problem was, when she got there, the place looked deserted.

"That's…strange," she whispered, getting off the scooter and looking around.

She grabbed the flowers and walked towards one of the buildings, the number in which was stated for the address.

"Ran, stay there, okay? I don't want you getting wet," she said. "Hello?" she called out, looking over at the side of the building.

She was about to turn around when someone came out from behind the crates.

"Hello, do you know where I can find someone by the name of Kazue Tanaka?" she asked, holding the flowers in her arms, the rain pouring down on her head.

The man stepped closer, causing her to take a few steps back.

"I know a Kazue, but his names not Tanaka," he laughed, stepping even closer.

"Oh, um… Well, he ordered these flowers so I need to find him," she said quietly, stepping back a bit more.

"He's right here…" another man said from behind her, making her whirl around quickly to face him.

"Nice flowers Kazue," a man with long black hair and golden eyes grinned, coming to stand before everyone. "And such a _pretty_ little flower maiden to go with him," he smiled cruelly, reaching forward and grabbing her arm roughly.

As a result, she dropped the vase, causing it to shatter all over the ground in pieces. She screamed when the man grabbed her by the hair, throwing her down to the ground afterward. He made an advance on her, only to end up getting clawed in the face by Ran under the eye.

"Why you little rat!" he yelled, pulling out a gun and aiming it at him.

"No!" Elizabeth cried out, grabbing for his arm, only to get shot in the arm and fall to the ground.

She whimpered in pain as she laid there holding her arm. She looked up at Ran, tears in her eyes.

"Run!" she cried, watching him quickly pick up one of the Hawthorne flowers and run as fast as his little legs could carry him.

He didn't stop once as he ran, running out of the warehouse division at full speed, the pouch around his neck making noise as the coins beat together in a rambling harmony.

"Let go of me!" Elizabeth cried out, weeping as the man held tightly to her long hair, bundling it up in his hand all the way to her scalp.

He gave it a painful tug, pulling her to her feet and leading her over into the warehouse. Once they were all inside, they closed the doors, throwing her to the floor in a heap.

"You know, I've been watching you lately little girl, I think that you'll fetch a high price on the market. What do you think boys?" the black haired man asked, turning his neck to look at his companions, revealing a serpent tattoo going up his neck.

They all chuckled cruelly at her, eyes trailing over her body hungrily. It made her shiver and creep back away from them.

"I think she'll catch a real high price Kiro," one man said to the black haired man.

Kiro nodded his head, walked back over to Elizabeth and grabbing hold of her chin roughly to make her look at him. He then leaned his head down close to hers, staring into her eyes.

"Or I could just keep you all to myself. I'm a rather _lonely_ man…" he whispered huskily into her ear.

Her eyes went wide as he said this, leaning down and kissing her roughly on the lips. She struggled against him, tears falling from her eyes. He didn't stop until she managed to bite his lip, drawing blood into her mouth. She managed to spit it out before being backhanded across the face.

"Ah!" she cried, hitting the floor.

She then rolled over, only to find him hovering over her with an angry expression on his face as he whipped his bloody lip.

"You little whelp!" he growled, kicking her in the stomach with his steel toed boot.

She cried out in pain, clutching her stomach.

"Ah…" she whimpered, trying to hold in her tears.

"You little brat!" he kicked her once again, even harder this time.

T

"_Get up!" came the gruff voice of a man to an 8 year old little girl._

_The little girl just laid there on the ground, beaten and bruised from head to toe. She couldn't get up, she just couldn't._

"_I said get up you little brat!" he yelled, kicking her in the stomach._

_She gasped for air as it left her system, leaving her lungs barren as she coughed up a bit of blood. The man then grabbed her by the hair, throwing her across the room and into the wall with a thud. She hit the wall with a loud bang before falling to the floor._

"_Daddy…please…stop," she cried, whimpering out of pain._

T

She sat there crying as the images of the past played through her head. She didn't remember any of the things that she had seen, but they felt so real.

"Do what you want to her, but be _polite_," Kiro said as he walked away, his men closing in on the poor woman. "Let's piss the flower shop boys off," he chuckled.

"Aya…" she whimpered as they surrounded her.

_Schuldig…_

**Okay everyone, that was the new chapter 10, mainly never before seen chapter. I hope everyone liked it? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me letting me know what you think? I love hearing what people have to say about my stories. Thanks everyone. Remember to check out my other stories for FINAL FANTASY 7, FMA, X-MEN, FRUITS BASKET, and MORE! Bye everyone. :)**


	11. Runaway Hawthorn Flower

**Redo Knight Hunters**

**Chapter 11**

**Runaway Hawthorn Flower**

Ran ran as fast as he could, speeding toward the one safe place, the one person that could truly help his master. He ran for Aya's help, for he knew what the four florists really did, he was just unable to tell his master about it.

_Sometimes I wish I were human_, the little cat thought, racing on ward toward his destination.

It took him at least 2 hours as he raced through the rain, the traffic, and small crowds of people to get anywhere close to where he needed to be. Anyone he ran by was shocked upon seeing a cat running through the rain with a flower in its mouth.

"Look Mommy, a runaway flower," a little girl said to her mother as Ran sped by them.

He couldn't afford to stop, even with the rain pouring down on his small body. He had to get to Aya and save his master. He just wished he could have done some more damage to that man that had hurt her, but at least he got him good, right at about his eye. He purred at the thought of it, seeing the flower shop just down the street. He meowed happily, trudging forward just a bit more even though his legs were beyond tired. As he got closer, he saw Yohji pulling down the gate. He meowed loudly, racing forward and zipping underneath his legs.

"Ran! What the hell?" Yohji exclaimed, holding a hand over his heart.

The cat just meowed in annoyance as he dropped the flower from his mouth, quickly shaking his body off and getting Yohji's pants slightly wet.

"Hey…wait a sec, where's Elizabeth?" he asked, looking down at the little fur ball.

Ran just let out a strained meow, picking up the flower and bringing it to Yohji. He bent down, taking it from Ran's mouth, a confused look on his face. That's when he saw the drops of blood on the flower. At that moment, Aya came into the room, causing Ran to run over to him. He meowed loudly, pawing at Aya's leg to get his attention.

"What is it?" he asked, looking down at his little feline friend.

"Elizabeth's…not with him," Yohji said, looking down at the flower in his hand.

Aya was speechless as he stood there, while Ran kept pawing at his collar, until the pouch came off. He then pawed it open, pulling the receipt book out with his teeth, jumping up on the table. He dropped it, meowing to get everyone's attention, nudging it with his nose.

"The receipt book?" Aya questioned, walking over and opening it.

As his eyes scanned over it, all deliveries were accounted for, save for the last one. He then looked at the flower in Yohji's hand, the drops of blood staining the Hawthorn catching his eyes. Upon seeing this, he went downstairs, Ran following right behind him.

"Omi, where was the last delivery supposed to go?" Aya asked, coming to stand behind the young boy.

He looked over at Aya in curiosity, his eyes escaping else where as he spotted Ran.

"Wait, where's Elizabeth?" he asked.

"Omi, _where_ was the last delivery supposed to go?" Aya asked again with more emphasis this time.

"Oh, um, warehouse district if I remember correctly. Why?" he asked, looking between Yohji and Aya who were silent.

Omi's eyes widened with realization, worry streaking his face.

"Oh my God," he whispered, holding his face in his hands. "But who?" he whispered, leaning back in his computer chair,

It was then that Ran jumped up to the computer, pressing buttons the keyboard with his tail and paws.

"Hey, stop that!" Omi cried, trying to pull him away, but Ran merely hissed at him to keep him away.

So, left alone, Ran continued typing until he was finished. Afterwards, Omi read what he had typed.

"Long black hair…gold eyes… 6"1'…serpent tattoo?" he questioned.

"Is there anything that that cat _can't_ do?" Yohji asked in amazement.

They then watched as Ran typed in "Kidnapper". He then typed in something else. "Kazue. Short gray hair. Green eyes. 5"10'".

"You know who that sounds like?" came the sound of Ken's voice.

Everyone turned to look at him save for Aya.

"That sounds like Kiro Sitonima," Ken said simply.

"Who's that?" Yohji asked.

Aya was about to say something when the T.V. click on, showing Persia as usual.

"Hunters of the night, I must call upon you once more for a mission. We've receive reports that a man by the name of Kiro Sitonima is back again as usual. This man kidnaps innocent women and sells them on the black market. He had several accounts of human trafficking against him,19 account of disorderly conduct, felonious assault, and many more. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to catch him yet. Hunters of the night, deny this evil beast his tomorrow!" Persia finished, the T.V. clicking off.

"So, will you take this mission?" Manx asked as she stepped out of the shadows.

"You know, you really should learn to knock," Ken commented as he turned to Manx.

"You know Manx," Yohji started as he came over and placed an arm around her shoulders, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that this mission was simply set up tonight just to cover our asses," Yohji said, an eyebrow slowly raising to accompany the smirk on his face.

"We've been wanting to be rid of this man for a while now," Manx said simply, pulling away from Yohji without another word to him. "So, will you take this mission then?"

As an answer, Aya snatched the file out of her hands and left the room, Ran following right behind him. Aya didn't take much time in getting dressed. The whole time, Ran sat and watched him as he changed, a sad expression on his face. In all honesty, he truly missed his master. It just wasn't the same with only Aya there to keep him company.

"We'll get her back," Aya said, reaching down and petting Ran's head.

He meowed quietly from Aya's bed, resting his head on it as he watched Aya pull out his katana from a high place in the back of his closet.

"We'll be back soon," Aya said, running out of his room and outside to the others.

T

"This is the place right?" Yohji asked as they all stood outside of the warehouse.

"Yeah," Omi said, watching as Ken shifted his weight, carefully watching his surroundings.

"This feels like a trap," Ken said, looking at his friends for a moment, before looking back at the warehouse.

"That's because it probably is," Aya stated, walking forward towards the large doors.

"Aya, wait!" Yohji called, but Aya just ignored him.

"I'm getting Elizabeth back, one way or another…" he growled lightly, hand holding tight to his katana.

He would make these people regret ever touching his friend. They'd regret ever being born after he was finished with him. He just hoped that Elizabeth was alright. If not…then there'd be hell to pay. With that, Aya continued forward, pushing the doors open and stepping inside with his comrades. Moments later, the doors were closed on them and bright lights suddenly turned on, temporarily blinding them for a few moments.

"Aya, it's a trap," Yohji said with caution as he stood there looking around at what lay before him, men surrounding them on all sides.

"We're surrounded," Omi whispered, drawing a steel tipped dart from his sleeve and holding it at the ready.

They looked around the room, crates littering the entire warehouse. Some of them held explosives, others held legal materials and various things, all things to sell on the black market. They even saw a few girls sitting in a corner guarded by men. It wasn't until they heard a voice that they looked up above them, a man standing high above in the rafters of the warehouse.

"Looking for this?" the man called.

He had long black hair and gleaming golden eyes, not to mention a tattoo going up his neck that looked like a serpent. Yep, that was definitely their guy. Kiro Sitonima, the leader of this gang. What really caught their attention though was who was up there with them. That someone was Elizabeth, who stood limply in his arms.

"So, you actually decided to show. And to think I was just about to have my way with her too, oh well, too bad," he said, gripping her tightly by the back of her neck, which must have been painful.

In fact, she looked as though she were barely even conscious as she stood there, her eyes barely staying open as she glanced down at everyone.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER!" Aya shouted with a firey rage.

He was about to rip this guy's head off that very moment.

"Oh, her? Oh, I just had a little fun, if you know what I mean," he said grinning, caressing the side of her neck lightly.

Kiro then pulled her face toward his, planting on kiss on her now swollen lips. He chuckled upon seeing the look on Aya's face. Yes, he could tell that this boy below him cared deeply for this _fragile_ woman.

_Too bad she'll be dead within a few minutes_, he thought to himself as he grinned deviously.

"You BASTARD!" Aya yelled once more.

_You're going to die,_ Aya seethed in his mind, still enraged at the site of Elizabeth's tattered, bloody body.

This man was going to die, and he was going to die by Aya's hands.

"Let her go, now!" Aya yelled, regretting his words the moment he said them.

Wrong move Abyssinian.

"As you wish," Kiro laughed, throwing Elizabeth from the rafters.

One word escaped her lips as she fell through the air, Aya's name that, was all that she could say as she fell further and further towards the ground. Aya stood there shocked, frozen in place the moment she was thrown from the rafters. When he saw this, his mind went to images of his sister's accident, or her being hit by that car. Now, he stood there watching her fall, unable to save her from her death. He could have though if he had moved the very moment she was thrown off, but he hadn't, he just stood there dumb struck. It was as though it had shattered his spirit with the fact at being so helpless to help a friend. He couldn't even save her, his actions were too slow, and so all that Elizabeth could do was just close her eyes as she met her fate.

Miraculously, that fate never came. She was very surprised at this event as was everyone else. She was so sure that she was going to die right there and then, but it never came, she was still alive and breathing though barely. She was still alive.

Everyone was shocked at the sight, for there in the arms of a man lay Elizabeth. He had caught her and to Aya and his friends, it just had to be a certain red head.

_Schuldig…_ she thought quietly, her eyes trailing up to his face.

"Schuldig, let her go!" Aya yelled as he ran toward the man who dodged with incredible speed as usual.

"Hm…I thought you already realized the consequence of those words," Schuldig teases as he glanced down at the woman in his arms, letting out a short sigh. "I'm not the one that you should be fighting right now Abyssinian. **He** is the one that you should be fighting right now," Schuldig said, pointing at Kiro Sitonima. "Believe me when I say this, I mean her no harm, plus if I wanted to hurt her I would have just let her fall to her death," he said with a smirk on his face as usual.

"Fine, but I swear if you put one scratch on her, you're dead," Aya called at Schuldig with hostility.

"Believe me, no harm shall come to her while in my hands," Schuldig said, saying as he took a partial bow only to mock Aya and utterly piss him off, which of course seemed to be one of Schuldig's favorite sports.

While Aya and the others fought, Elizabeth was left with her savior.

"Schuldig…" she whispered, gazing up tiredly at his handsome face for which she was slowly beginning to become accustomed to.

His bangs were held back in their usual manner with the help of his yellow head band, his sunglasses still perched on top of his head as usual. The only true difference this time was that he was wearing a light blue dress shirt under his trench coat, the collar of the shirt poking up and out from his coat.

"Take it easy, you're safe my friend," he whispered into her ear softly, brushing a hand gently over her face.

This put her at ease, feeling a sense of security in being held in his arms. She didn't know why, but she felt safe with this man whom she called her friend. He was strong, graceful, agile, and witty. He definitely knew how to piss people off easily, that was for sure. Though all in all, he was a decent man in her eyes.

Listening to her thoughts, he couldn't help but to smile. He leaned forward a bit more, allowing their noses to touch as he had done many times before. He just stared into her eyes, stroking her cheek gently with his thumb as his mind wandered on its own for a few moments, scenarios playing in his head. He could see her spinning in his arms, dancing to a seductive dance, almost like things had been at the club that night. How he wished to dance with her once again, but she was in no position to do so at the moment. No, she was far from being that that comforting position with him any time soon.

With a quiet sigh, he pressed his lips lightly to her forehead, feeling her melt against his gentle touch. He knew no doubt she had suffered nearly two straight hours of brutal torture and beatings. That's all it had been, Kiro got his _high_ from watching her being beat to a premature pulp.

Schuldig's lip twitched dangerously at the thought of this, his little kitten being tortured. If anyone was going to _torture_ her, it was going to be him, not some black market lunatic.

He looked down when he felt her grasp his coat in her hand, clutching at it quietly, her hand twitching. His eyes softened faintly as he gently took hold of her hand, grasping it in his own strong one. He looked around for a moment, before disappearing into the shadow, his mind set on getting away from the warehouse that had caused her so much pain.

With quick, agile steps, he sped toward somewhere else. He held her small body against him as jumped from various things, smoothing her hair down with his hand, and stroking her cheek. This is what she savored and treasured, the comforting feeling of touch from a friend, a trust person that she knew. It put her at ease and allowed her to relax.

Soon enough, they were in a clearing in a wooded area, far from prying eyes. This allowed Schuldig to sit with her and sooth and mend her broken spirit. Granted, it wasn't something he would normally do. Normally, he'd be doing the exact opposite to someone, destroying their spirit. He couldn't do that to her though, it was purely out of the question in his mind.

_Get close to her…_

He already had.

_Get her to trust you…_

She already did.

_Watch over her…_

He already was.

_Now, get her to fall in love with you…Schudig._

Crawford's words echoed in his mind as he sat there with her. Get her to fall in love with him? That shouldn't be too hard right? Although what about Aya? He'd never truly be out of the picture, but that didn't mean Schuldig couldn't weasel his way into Elizabeth's life further. Besides, he found her rather interesting and who knew, maybe he'd eventually fall in love too.

Schuldig nearly laughed at that little thought. _Him_, in love? The crazy German whacko? Please. Then again as he sat there, it didn't seem too farfetched. This girl truly was interesting and made him actually think at times. She was the only one that he didn't want to completely destroy. Although, that didn't mean that he couldn't mess with her head at times just for the fun of it, right? Then again, he could always just get joy out of annoying her friends from the flower shop. Yes, if he weaseled his way further into her life, he could drive Weiss right to their deaths with annoyance.

_Such a wonderful thought!_ He thought to himself with a smile.

Now was one of the few times that he could think, being far away from so many people and their constant bickering minds that plagued him daily. Sometimes he truly couldn't tell his own thoughts apart from theirs.

_So warm…so calm…so…peaceful, _Elizabeth thought, listening to the sound of Schuldig's heartbeat.

The sound was music to her delicate ears, beating away in his chest like a constant steady beating drum. It was never ending, but still so soothing to her mind. It made her think of Aya's, how his would beat away in his chest calmly, but Schuldig's seemed different. She wasn't sure how though, but it was somehow.

"Do you like the sound of my heartbeat?" Schuldig whispered into her ear.

She would have blushed at his question, but she was too tired to do so, so she merely nodded her head slowly. That told him well enough that she liked the sound of his heartbeat.

"It's…nice," she whispered, closing her eyes and keeping her tired head rest against his chest, ear over his heart.

He smirked at his, satisfied with her current answer.

"I bet yours sounds just as nice," he whispered in her ear, hoping to get some sort of reaction out of her, but he got none.

All she did was smile at him as he said this and nothing more.

_Thank you…Schuldig._

**That was another new chapter. It had a little bit of my old chapter Mission Search and Rescue in it, but not much. I hope that everyone enjoyed it? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me? I always loving hearing what people think of my stories. AND don't forget to check out my PROFILE and look at all of my other stories. After I finish fixing this one some more and get some more chapters up, I'll probably start UPDATING my others ones again. I just need...INSPIRATION! Once again, thanks for reading everyone.**


	12. Despair

**Redo Knight Hunters**

**Chapter 12**

**Despair**

All four guys sat around Elizabeth's hospital bed talking in hushed voices, flowers covering each and every available table in the room.

"Guys, what if she remembers us? I mean, seeing us fighting and all?" Omi asked, looking around at everyone in worry.

"Don't worry about it Omi, Schuldig got her out of there. Besides, she was barely conscious anyway, so I highly doubt she'll remember seeing us," Yohji explained, his eyes looking down at Elizabeth as he placed a hand lightly on her cheek. "I'm still pissed though that those guys had the nerve to do this to her though," Yohji said in quiet anger.

"Cool it Yohji," Ken said, standing up with a yawn as he stretched his arms above his head. "I'm going to get something to eat, you coming Omi?" Ken called behind him as he walked out the door.

Omi then got up and ran after him. Once the two were out of the room, Yohji turned to Aya, a sad look on his face.

"What are we going to do?" he asked, looking down at Elizabeth.

It was truly a sad and disturbing sight to see. She looked so beat up, bruises covering nearly every inch of her body, she even had a couple cracked ribs too. As she lay there, bandages covered her arm and leg, along with her head. A long bandage had been wrapped around her forehead and she even had a small patch covering her cheek right below her left eye. She was an absolute mess. The men that had taken her had practically destroyed her upon doing what they had done to her. They hadn't raped her, but they had sure as hell hurt her.

"I don't know," Aya said quietly, holding onto Elizabeth's hand.

He ran his thumb over it gently, brushing it over the top of her knuckles. Even now, her skin was still so delicate to his worn touch and faintly callused hands. How he wished that she would wake up. It had been nearly a week since the incident and they had left the shop closed, labeling it as family illness, which technically it was. They had a few of the normal customers ask them about things, one in particular a Jin Masako. He had asked about Elizabeth and as a result, Yohji had explained to him that she was currently in the hospital after an accident. Jin felt terrible and had actually come to visit her with his wife and daughter yesterday, all three of them praying for her and giving Aya and the boys their condolences. They'd even left a small arrangement of flowers for her.

What hurt most though, was that Aya had to sit there each passing day, just watching as she slept. It hurt him inside to see her like that, so torn and beaten. No one should end up like that, especially not someone like her. She was kind and sweet, loving and friendly, considerate and helpful. In the eyes of the flower shop quartet, she was an angel, their angel.

A faint groan caused both men to throw their attention in Elizabeth's direction, watching as her eyes slowly opened, the hazy look in her eyes staring back at them.

"Elizabeth," they breathed out in utter shock and surprise.

She winced as she tried to move, both men taking hold of her and gently pushing her back against the bed.

"Don't try and get up," Yohji said softly, placing a hand on her cheek for a moment, before bringing it down to hold her other hand that Aya wasn't holding.

"My back hurts," she whimpered, squeezing Aya and Yohji's hands.

"I'll go and get a nurse," Yohji volunteered, running out of the room quickly to find one to help her.

Mean while, it left Elizabeth and Aya alone by theirselves.

"I'm…glad you're alright," Aya whispered, pressing his forehead to her hand.

She gave him a worried look. He looked absolutely exhausted as though he'd spent countless nights awake without any sleep. There were even dark rings under his eyes from lack of sleep.

"Aya…" she whispered, sitting up despite the pain.

Then, she leaned forward slightly, placing her hand tiredly against his cheek. He actually looked as though he might break down at that moment, which was truly rare for him.

"Aya…" she whispered again, her brows furrowing as she looked at him.

His eyes were slightly watery, and his hands shook a bit. This all told her how much he was truly hurting inside. Seeing all of this, she slowly pulled her other hand from his, lightly brushing the rims of his eyes with her fingertips. She gave him a weak smile as they sat there, before leaning forward and kissing his cheek.

"You act as if I'd died and gone to heaven," she whispered.

Upon hearing these words, Aya's hands clenched tightly, slight anger passing through him.

_Because you nearly did and it's my fault!_

"Aya?" she whispered hoarsely, her face contorting with worry.

"If it weren't for me, then you wouldn't have gotten hurt," he growled lightly.

At this, Elizabeth frowned, reaching out and placing her hands on his shaky ones.

"Aya…it's not your fault," she told him, lightly squeezing his hands.

"Yes, it is!" he said harshly, making her flinch.

"Aya…"

She'd never heard him use that tone before when talking to her; it hurt. He kept this angry voice for a few more minutes, before the sound of flesh meeting flesh was heard, a slap resonating through the room.

Aya sat there, speechless at his now stinging cheek. There were tears in the young girls eyes as she sat in her bed. A look of pure anguish on her face upon slapping him, but unfortunately, nothing else had seemed to work up until now. Therefore, Aya sat there with the shape of a handprint on the left side of his face. Never in her wildest dreams had she pictured herself doing something such as that.

"S-s-top it A-Aya…j-just s-stop it!" she cried, tears falling from her grayish eyes.

All that he could do was sit there, stunned at her actions as he slowly brought his hand up and delicately touched his burning cheek. It hurt as though it had been burned by hellfire itself, cutting into his skin and searing it. He watched as she brought her hands up to her face, crying into them.

"Hey, what…what's going on?" Omi asked as he stepped into the room. "Elizabeth?" he called out, sitting his bag of food down on the table along with his drink.

He then made his way over to her, placing his hands on her shoulders, before drawing her into a hug. It was then that Yohji walked in with a nurse, a look of surprise on his face at the scene before him.

"What happened?" he asked, staring at Aya.

It didn't take long for him to notice the red handprint on his face though, drawing even more questions from the suave ladies man.

"Aya…what did you do?" Yohji asked slowly.

All that Aya did was sit there for a moment longer, before standing up and walking out the door. He couldn't stand to be in that room anymore. He couldn't stand sitting there, watching Elizabeth's tear stricken face, one that _he_ had caused.

"Yohji…" Elizabeth cried as he came towards her. "I-I didn't…I didn't m-m-mean to," she cried, referring to how she had slapped Aya.

She hated herself for doing such a thing to her friend, but nothing else had got through to him.

"I'm sorry…" she whimpered, gripping Yohji's hand.

T

A week after waking up, Elizabeth was back at home with the boys again. Although, things were different now. Since she had gotten back, Aya had been avoiding her, which was actually doing more damage to her than anyone realized. Aya kept taking all of the deliveries, making sure to stay away from the shop as much as humanly possible, away from Elizabeth. Also, for the first few nights of this, the door between their rooms stayed open as usual. Finally, after about the fourth night, Elizabeth decided to close her side. She was getting tired of being ignored, she was also growing wary of his nightly absence. She thought that by closing her side that she might be able to rid herself of the issue, safe herself the grief, but it did her little good. Worst yet was the nightmares that plagued her dreams.

T

Once again, she woke up from that dreaded dream. Each night, she'd dream of the night at the warehouse. Each and every time it was like she was reliving it, bit by bit, hit by hit. Each night, it became more and more real. She couldn't take it anymore. A few nights prior, she had gone to Yohji's room, shaken and scared. She would have gone to Aya, but once again, he was missing. She remembered the look of fear on Yohji's face when she had walked into his room, falling to her knees by his bed. He had just dozed off, only to wake up to the sound of her crying. It pained him to see her like that, afraid to close her eyes at night in fear of repeated terrors. Her repeated night visits were starting to take their toll on even him, staying up with her just so that she could have a small chance of returning to sleep without fear.

As she sat there in bed, she knew that she couldn't go to Yohji again. He was already worn and drained, she couldn't bare to add any more to it.

Subconsciously, she got up and walked toward Aya's room, quietly opening up her side of the door. For once as she gazed on, he was finally there in his bed, his back to her as he slept. She couldn't help the added tears as she watched him, hesitantly walking towards him. She reached her hand out, allowing it to hover just above his bare shoulder. Her hand shook as she stood there hesitating.

"Aya…" she whispered quietly as she choked out tears, her hand barely brushing his skin.

She just couldn't do it. She was still upset with herself for what she had done to him. She needed him so much right now, but she also couldn't bring herself to wake him. He had told her that she could always come to him if she needed him, asleep or no, it didn't matter to him. She just couldn't do it though.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, quietly moving back out of the room, not bothering to close her door back as she then went outside.

The moment she left Aya's room, he sat up, slowly bringing his hand to his shoulder. A sad look was plastered on his face as he slowly stood up, moving and pulling on a pair of black pants, he also went and slipped on his sleeveless black shirt before exiting the room.

T

Elizabeth stood there quietly, staring out at the city from the top of the roof. Tears still poured from her eyes as she stood there, body shaking and weak. What was she supposed to do? In fact, what _could_ she do. She couldn't avoid Aya forever, just like she couldn't avoid falling asleep into those nightmares, she was trapped.

"I can't do this…" she whispered, standing near the edge of the roof, the wind blowing lightly against her and caressing her ragged frame.

_Jump… _a voice echoed in her head.

_End all of this pain so I can take you away from here…_

_Leave behind this suffering…_

_Jump…_

T

Aya slowly made his way to the sounds of Elizabeth's sobs, following the trail toward the staircase that led to the roof. He felt horrible for ignoring her as he had done so recently. He was going to make everything okay again. He was going to make her smile again and chase away her nightmares.

T

The figure in the shadows watched as Elizabeth took a few small steps closer to the edge of the building, standing only inches from the edge. Her eyes were clouded with despair, sadness, and guilt. She was in her own little world as the voice in her head coaxed her further toward the edge.

_Let go…_

_There's nothing left here for you and you know it…_

_Aya obviously doesn't care, I mean, he _has_ been avoiding you all this time…_

_No one cares…_

_No one…_

_No one…_

She stepped closer, her bare feet brushing the inner lining of the ledge.

_No one cares…_

_No one…_

_No one…_

"Elizabeth?" Aya called, just barely catching her in his line of sight as he made his way to the top of the stairs.

_No one cares…_

_No one but me…_

"Elizabeth?" Aya called again upon reaching the very top, his eyes locking onto her.

_Jump..._the voice echoed as she edged closer, feet now at the very edge.

_Jump._

"Elizabeth!" Aya called out, his eyes slightly wide as he saw her shaking.

_Jump!_

She felt so faint as the wind whipped around her. She didn't even see Aya running toward her as she stood there.

_Jump!_

"No…" she whispered, her knees buckling beneath her weight.

"Elizabeth!" Aya cried out, rushing forward as she fell.

He leapt forward, sliding off the edge of the roof as he gripped the edge with one hand, the other wrapped tightly around Elizabeth's wrist.

"Hang on!" he told her, holding onto her wrist tightly.

"Aya…?" she whispered, her eyes becoming watery as the cloudiness faded from them, unconsciousness setting in.

"Yohji!" Aya yelled, trying to make as much noise as he could as he hung there by his fingertips.

Moments later, Yohji opened up his window in annoyance.

"What! Oh shit…"

That's all that Yohji could say as he saw the two hanging from the roof, Elizabeth hanging by her wrist in the air.

"Hang on!" he called out, quickly racing out of his room and to the roof.

Yohji caught Aya's arm before his hand slipped, gripping it in his hands.

"You got a good hold on her?" Yohji asked.

"Yeah."

"Okay because I'm gonna pull you up now," Yohji told him.

Yohji then carefully began pulling him up, til he was able to grab him by the back of his shirt, pulling him up the rest of the way. Elizabeth followed right after. Once she was back up on the roof, Aya held her in his arms, the event replaying in his mind. His hands clenched painfully as he held her against him, almost afraid to let her go after what had just happened. Once again, he felt as though it were partly his fault as though he had partially driven her to jump. Although, he figured it probably also had something to do with her constant nightmares.

"What happened?" Yohji asked, his breath strained from pulling the weight of two people back up onto the roof.

Aya just looked down at Elizabeth, sadness lacing his eyes.

"She nearly jumped," Aya said quietly, Elizabeth's head resting in the crook of his neck, his arms around her still in a protective manner.

"She what?" Yohji asked in shock.

"She nearly jumped…" Aya repeated once more, not willing to say it a third time.

"My God…" Yohji whispered, nearly taking a step back.

He couldn't believe it. Were things really _that_ bad? Had they seriously become _that_ out of control that she thought to jump? He just couldn't believe it, that innocent woman, she just wanted to throw her life away. Granted, Yohji knew just how hard life could be, so in a way he couldn't blame her. Although, that was still no excuse. Had she ever thought about what doing something like that to herself would do to them? To her friends? Something like that would probably be Yohji's breaking point, same with Aya's. Both men cared for the young woman before them, for she was the light in the darkness of their dreary lives. She actually gave them hope for living on this wretched earth.

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Yohji stepped forward, placing a hand on Aya's shoulder.

"Let's get her back inside," Yohji said softly, helping Aya stand up a bit.

_I never want you to die…_

**Okay everyone, that was chapter 12, an all new chapter. I hope that everyone liked it? Please, please, PLEASE REVIEW and MESSAGE me? I love hearing what people think of my stories. Also, am I still keeping Schuldig's appearances at a good pace? I don't want it to go to quickly like I did during my first attempt of this story. There's much more life to this story that there used to be. Remember to check my PROFILE out and read my other stories too for FINAL FANTASY 7, X-MEN, ESCAFLOWNE, FMA, FRUITS BASKET, and MORE!**


	13. Watch Closely

**Redo Knight Hunters**

**Chapter 13**

**Watch Closely**

"Damn," Schuldig muttered to himself as he walked briskly down the halls of his current establishment.

He had been so close to getting her to jump and it was ruined by Aya. She was almost in his reach, so close he could practically taste it. He remembered how she had said no, before collapsing and falling from the roof. Granted, he had smirked at the look on Aya's face as she had gotten close to the edge, but that was beside the point. He was angry that the red head had interfered with his little plan. He wasn't going to let her get hurt, her falling was just going to be his opportunity to steal her away. After all, she had been ignored greatly since she had returned home from the hospital. Not to mention those constant nightmares that tormented her every single night since her kidnapping. Schuldig was going to catch her and take her, but Fujimiya got in the way.

He sighed as he opened the door to his room, closing it behind him as he entered, before flopping down on his bed. He could just imagine Elizabeth laying there curled up on his bed beside him, her fears forgotten, and thoughts of Aya completely removed.

_If only…if only that brat hadn't gotten in the way, _he thought, before growling, "She should have jumped like I told her to."

"What are you grumbling about this time?" a boy asked in annoyance.

Schuldig groaned as he turned his head to look at the 15 year old standing in the corner of his room.

"Get out," Schuldig said curtly.

"No need to be rude Schuldig, I merely asked a question."

"_Out_ Nagi," Schuldig said tiredly as he placed his arm over his eyes.

Moments later, he heard his door closing with a dull thud, letting him sit up.

He ran a hand through his hair, removing his head band and sunglasses. He sat there staring at the wall as his bangs came loose, a few brushing over his eyes, tickling the tops of his eyelids. He then stood up and removed his clothes, throwing them to the floor lazily as he grabbed a pair of cloud print pajama pants.

_How I love seeing Crawford's face when he sees me in these, _he chuckled in his head, remembering the look of annoyance Crawford gave him every time he saw Schuldig wearing them.

This was actually the only reason why Schuldig persisted on wearing them at times because it annoyed his associate. He grinned at that thought, before walking out of his room, bare chest and pajama pants to Crawford's office. He walked right in without even knocking, annoying the black haired American that sat behind the desk.

"How many times do I have to tell you to knock?" Crawford muttered, daring to look up for a brief moment, regretting it once he saw the man's attire.

Schuldig grinned at this, walking up to the desk and placing his hands on it as he leaned over it a bit eyeing the papers. Crawford immediately covered them up, narrowing his eyes slightly at Schuldig.

"What do you want Schuldig?" he asked irritably.

"What? I thought that you'd be _glad_ to know that I was home," Schuldig cooed as he stepped over behind the desk, wrapping an arm around Crawford's shoulders. "You know what you need?" Schuldig asked, leaning down next to the man's ear. "A pair of these," Schuldig said, gesturing to his sleep attire.

He watched in amusement as Brad glared at him. How he loved annoying him.

"I think that you'd look absolutely _delightful_ in a pair of boxer cover in _pink_ polka dots," Schuldig whispered, his lips touching the rim of Brad's ear.

Crawford's eye twitched.

"Do you want me to kill you now or later?" he asked in annoyance, trying to control his anger.

"Why? I thought that you _loved_ my company," Schuldig chuckled.

"And yet I find you to be an utter nuisance. Not to mention, you know that I _loathe _it whenever you act as if you were gay," Crawford said with distaste.

This only made Schuldig laugh more.

"Oh yes, but I _love_ seeing the look on your face ever time," he laughed in amusement. "Don't worry though, I've already met someone and she's to die for," he said happily with a smirk on his face

"Oh? Then where is she?" Crawford asked smugly.

This made Schuldig frowned.

"Her little _pumpkins_ got in the way," he said lowly, the question already drowning his mood.

"Maybe next time then," Crawford said, an icy smile on his face.

Schuldig let out a faint growl as he left the room, going back to his bedroom and laying back down on his bed.

_He just _had_ to ruin my mood, _he scoffed, rolling over onto his stomach and placing his head on his pillow. _Next time, she'll be mine for sure._

Once again, he imagined her dancing around the room with him gracefully, his hand on the small of her back. He could smell the scent of her hair, feel the softness of her skin, and hear the graceful sound of her voice. He could imagine every little thing about her in his mind as he eased his way out of consciousness and into a particularly pleasant dream.

T

"Hey, shouldn't Elizabeth be up by now?" Omi asked as he looked over at Ken.

"Yeah. In fact, both Aya _and_ Yohji are missing too," Ken said as he made his way upstairs.

Omi followed behind him as they traveled up to the other rooms. They both knocked on Aya and Yohji's doors, but received no answer. As a result, they knocked on Elizabeth's door. They could hear a faint groan, before the door opened, revealing Yohji.

Ken eye twitched slightly upon seeing him in Elizabeth's room, but that soon went away as he saw Aya hunched over the girl's bed.

"Yohji, what's going on?" Ken asked.

The older man didn't say anything as he stepped out of the room, closing the door behind him. He then went to his room, leaving the door open as he removed his shirt, tossing it on the bed. He changed right there in front of Ken and Omi. When he was finally done, he sat down on his bed, gesturing for his friends to come in the rest of the way and close the door behind them.

"Now, mind telling us what's going on?" Ken asked, raising an eyebrow at his friend.

"We're all going to have to keep a close eye on her from now on and watch her closely," Yohji said, falling back onto his bed for a moment, looking up at his ceiling.

"Why?" came Omi's curious voice.

Yohji stiffened for a moment, thinking back to the previous night. He then looked at the two out of the corner of his eye.

"Last night," he paused for a moment, closing his eyes before saying, "she tried to jump."

The boys looked at him like he was crazy.

"You can't be serious," Omi exclaimed, taking a step forward, hands clenched. "She wouldn't…she wouldn't do something like that!" Omi yelled.

At this, Yohji sat up.

"But she did. If it weren't for Aya, she'd be dead right now," Yohji growled slightly, running a hand through his hair in annoyance.

In all honesty, he wasn't really mad, he was still just upset at the fact that she had attempted suicide. She put a smile on his face daily. He wouldn't know what to do if that were to ever end.

"Haven't you noticed what those nightmares have been doing to her or Aya's lack of attention toward her lately?" Yohji asked as he stared at the two in front of him.

"I…I didn't realize," Omi whispered.

"Exactly," Yohji pointed out, standing up and walking to his door.

He opened it and walked out, Ken and Omi following behind him and closing the door, before going back to Elizabeth's room. They stood in front of it for a moment, glancing at each other.

"No talking to her about it…okay?" Yohji looked at both of them, hoping to get the point across.

He found that he did when both boys nodded their heads in silent promise. With that, they entered the room together, eyes falling on Elizabeth and Aya. What they didn't like though, was the fact that Elizabeth was awake and staring at them, a sadness filling her eyes. No doubt she had heard them from her spot on her bed, guilt slowly starting to consume her once more. She turned over, her back facing them now, waking Aya in the process. He looked around, before his brows furrowed in groggy question.

"She heard part of what we were talking about," Yohji whispered to Aya, causing the red head to narrow his eyes at the three.

Slowly, Aya stood up, placing a hand on Elizabeth's shoulder. Her hand slowly came up to grip it, nearly holding onto his fingertips.

"I'll be back in a little bit," he told her.

Reluctantly, she let go of his hand, closing her eyes tightly. She heard all four of them leave her room, the door closing behind them as they went downstairs into the shop.

T

"What's wrong with you guys? Talking when she's in hearing range like that?" Aya asked as he glared at his friends.

They just stood there silently, not saying a word til they were sure that Aya was done.

"I'm sure you explained things to them Yohji, so why do it?" he asked, his hands curling into fists at his sides.

Yohji sighed in annoyance, scratching the back of his head as he looked at Aya.

"Look, it's not like I did it on purpose, okay. Why don't you go back up there and keep her company, okay? We'll take care of things down here for now," Yohji told him, turning around and heading toward the front of the shop.

Aya let out a faint sigh, before heading back upstairs to Elizabeth's room, entering it quietly. When he came in, she was still laying with her back toward the door. He placed a hand at the back of his head for a moment, before walking over to her and sitting down on the edge of the bed. Her eyes glanced over at him as he sat there, tears obviously rimming her eyes. Seeing this, he gently whipped them away, before pulling her up into his arms as he wrapped her in a hug.

"I'm sorry, Aya…" she whispered, gripping the front of his shirt in her small hand.

She was still tired from all of the sleepless nights in bed, the nightmares that kept waking her up and depriving her peaceful sleep. She just wanted to lay there and sleep, maybe disappear, she wasn't sure. She still wondered if the voice from the previous night had a hold on her when her mind came to thoughts of disappearing.

"Aya?" she whispered, looking up at him.

Their eyes met as they sat there, locking with one another.

"Can we…go to the park?" she asked, her brows coming together in a begging question.

He gave a short nod, helping her stand up with him.

"Get dressed and then we'll go," he told her, walking back into his room, the sheet between the door fluttering back down as he left.

Quietly, she walked over to her closet, glancing at the clothes on the hangers. Her eyes caught sight of the sleeveless black top with a thin twisting dragon on it, a red rose embellished with it. She grabbed that along with a pair of slim dark blue jeans, bringing them over to her bed as she got undressed. She was tired, but didn't want to stay in her room or at the shop. She sighed as she pulled the jeans on, before pulling the black top over her torso. She gave a faint smile as she looked down at her clothes, reaching down and tying her shoes. When she was done, she grabbed a jacket and walked into Aya's room, finding him changing his shirt.

"Ready?" he asked, pulling his red shirt down a bit more.

She nodded her head quietly, taking hold of the hand that he had just extended to her. The two of them then walked out the door, downstairs, and out of the shop. They didn't even say anything to Yohji or the others as they left. They just left everything behind as they walked toward the park together, Elizabeth holding onto Aya's arm as she did every now and then for comfort and safety. It was one of the things that gave her comfort. She trusted him and the warmth that he bestowed upon her was irreplaceable.

Eventually, they sat down underneath a tree in the park together, the tree shading them from the sun's rays. It was peaceful out, calming their rampant minds, mainly Elizabeth's.

She sighed quietly as she laid her head against Aya's shoulder, closing her eyes.

The two of them sat there for quite some time before either of them spoke, the silence between them a comforting one.

"Elizabeth?" Aya called her name softly, turning his eyes to look over at her.

"Hm?" she replied without opening her eyes.

Aya hesitated for a moment before speaking, debating on how to phrase things.

"Why…why did you do it?" Aya asked, watching as she stiffened.

She drew in a long breath before responding, dreading the words that had to come out.

"I…I don't know," she said quietly, turning her head to look away.

"Have things really become that bad?" Aya asked, a sad tone in his voice.

He longed to hear that he was wrong, but he knew that he was right to a degree. She had started dreading everyday of her life since the incident that brought on those nightmares. She hated waking up, hated going to sleep, always afraid that the dreams were real.

"No…" she whispered, pinching her eyes closed tightly.

"You don't have to lie," Aya said calmed, despite how he was feeling on the matter.

This made her frown. She didn't realize that she was that bad of a liar, but apparently she was. Sighing, she stood up and walked toward the pond in front of them. She stood there, arms wrapped around herself, her jacket laying folded on Aya's legs. She stood there, staring out in front of her, her eyes watery.

"Do you…really want to know?" she whispered, not turning to look at him as she spoke.

"Yes, I do," he replied, waiting to hear what she truly felt.

"It is…" she whispered finally, turning around to look at him, finding a sadness in his eyes. "The nightmares…they won't stop. You kept blaming yourself for what happened and I couldn't take it. You…you kept avoiding me…and I never…I never saw you," she cried, falling to her knees, her hands flying up to cover her face.

_That idiotic boy messes with her head more than I do._

_She's still broken._

_Still hanging by a thread._

_Now he's cutting it._

_She'll fall once again._

"It keeps tearing at me daily…tearing me apart, Aya. I don't…I don't know what to do anymore," she whimpered. "Everything…it's just too much," she cried, tears stinging her eyes in sorrow.

Her eyes were tired once again, her body weak as she sat there crying in shame. She hated herself for having such thoughts, hated herself for telling him such a dreaded truth, she just hated herself.

_That's right…hold onto that anger…_

_Hold onto that rage that burns in your heart…_

_It will be your only salvation…_

These words echoed in her head, but they weren't exactly hers. She didn't know where they were coming from, but she still heard them all the same.

"No…" she cried, holding her head. "Stop it…"she cried out, tears continuing to fall.

"Elizabeth?" Aya stood up, slowly walking over to her, before falling to his knees in front of her as he took her shoulders in his hands.

He looked down at her, shaking her slightly as he tried to get her attention. She just kept talking to herself though or talking to someone else for that matter.

"Stop…" she whined, pulling away from Aya as she stood up, hands still clutching her head.

Aya saw this and quickly looked around, spotting something in the shadows. Quickly, he leapt forward, attacking.

Shouts rang out as two men rolled out of the bushes, one being Aya, the other the orange haired German.

"Get off me!" Schuldig managed to yell out before getting a quick punch in the face.

"You bastard!" Aya growled, punching him again as hard as he possibly could, nearly braking the man's nose in the process.

Elizabeth just stood there watching the two in shock, the voice gone from her head. She merely watched as her two friends went at it. Although, to her it seemed as though Aya was the one beating up on her German friend.

"Aya…" she whispered, taking a few slow steps forward.

He didn't hear her of course as he continued his brutal assault on Schuldig's body.

"I warned you, you harm her and I'll kill you!" Aya spat, punching the man below him once more, busting the man's lip.

Schuldig spat the blood out of his mouth and onto the grass, his eyes spotting Elizabeth as she slowly drew closer, a faint smirk on his face. The smirk soon disappeared though as Aya dished out a few more blows.

"Stop it!" Elizabeth cried as she ran forward. "Aya, stop it! You're hurting him!" she cried, trying to pull Aya off of him, but it did her little good.

She was just tossed to the side as Aya continued trying to beat the man to a pulp.

"Get off of me you brat!" Schuldig yelled in annoyance, catching the side of Aya's face with his fist, finally knocking him off.

No sooner did he get up though, he was hit in the back of the neck, falling down to the ground once more. Elizabeth cried out again, throwing herself over him, protecting him from Aya. Aya didn't like this, but he stopped nonetheless, backing away from the two.

"I'm sorry that you had to see this," Aya told her, walking away and out of sight.

Though he never truly left, but merely hid, watching over her.

"Schuldig?" she called her friends name, sitting up a bit as she looked down at him.

He was a complete mess now, blood covering his face, along with a bloody lip. Carefully, she placed her hand on his face, running her finger over it gently. Her hand shook as she gazed down at him, taking everything in.

"Schuldig?" she whispered, shaking his shoulder lightly, earning a groan in response. "Schuldig…" a faint smile graced her lips as he opened those stunning blue eyes of his.

"Hey," he greeted, gritting his teeth through the pain.

"Here," she said, helping him sit up despite his protest of pain.

Once again, she placed a hand on his cheek, gently running her other hand over his face. Her hand trailed over his strong brow, feeling it twitch slightly under her touch from the pressure. She moved it to his eye, lightly grazing her fingertip over it, the redness of his skin already starting to show through from the beating. Slowly, her hand made its way to the side of his throbbing jaw. She frowned at this as she came to look at his lip next.

"Hold on," she said, standing up and grabbing her jacket.

She then came back over and sat down beside him again, her hand going to his cheek as she dabbed the sleeve against his lip. It stung, but he put up with it, watching as she took care of him. He never knew that her touch could be so gentle, leaving a warm feeling in his heart.

_Perhaps this assignment truly won't be that bad after all, _he thought to himself as his eyes found her face, a small smile tugging at his lips as he stared up at her delicate face.

"You know what would make me feel better?" he asked with a grin.

She looked at him for a moment, a curious look on her face.

"What?"

"A hug," he said, giving her an innocent smile.

"Seriously? After everything Aya did to you, you're asking for a hug?" she asked skeptically.

He merely nodded his head, holding out his arms for a hug like a child.

Giving a short laugh, she complied, wrapping her arms around his neck as he closed his arms around her.

In the distance, Schuldig could see Aya. There was a smug look on Schuldig's face as he pressed his face into the girl's hair, inhaling her scent. He watched as Aya's hands curled into fists.

_What now, Abyssinian? _Schuldig laughed in his head.

How he loved playing with that man, riling him up like that, just to shoot him down in the end. Now, he was merely satisfied with holding onto Elizabeth, the feel of her arms around his neck sending him elsewhere. How he wished to always do this just to spite the red head. He grinned to himself as he thought this. Perhaps he _could_ do this more often. Besides, he still had to weasel his way further into Elizabeth's life before he would be able to take her away from her over protective friends. Unfortunately, he wouldn't be able to hold it off for much longer. Otherwise, he'd have to face the people that he truly worked for, which would include pain beyond human belief. The old bags as he called them at times wanted more power than they needed, they wanted to truly destroy the world and everything in it. This, while Crawford wanted to merely rule it, not destroy it. Plus, if the world were destroyed, then where would Schuldig be? Despite his pains in life, he wanted to live his life, not die. So that was the true reason why he had begun to make Elizabeth's life a premature hell. He was being forced to drag her into something for which she needn't be involved in, something she had no right witnessing.

His thoughts were interrupted when she pulled away, a smile on her face as she looked down at him.

"What's with the serious look?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Nothing kätzchen," he said, causing her to give him a curious look.

This made him laugh as he had forgotten most people didn't understand him when he spoke in his native tongue. This would make things much more interesting for him, since Crawford normal reprimanded him for speaking in his native language.

"Did you just call me kitten?" she asked curiously.

He laughed again, a small grin on his face.

"So, what if I did? I'm surprised you figured it out though," he said honestly, slowly standing up, regardless of the pain.

"Well, it sounded like kitten," she said, grabbing hold of his arm. "What are you anyway?" she asked curiously, referring to what country he was from.

"German. You?"

"Don't know. I think my mom mentioned me being American-Japanese once, but that's all I know," she told him, standing beside him. "It would explain your accent though," she laughed.

"What's wrong with my accent?" he asked as though offended.

"N-nothing, it's just a bit different than what I'm used to," she explained, quietly tugging him toward the pond. "And, you're not going anywhere til I clean you up the rest of the way," she told him, making him sit down in front of the pond.

From there, she dipped the sleeve of her jacket into the water, wetting it before bringing it up to Schuldig's face. Again, she took his face into her hand, tilting it to the side slightly as she gently rubbed the material over his still sensitive skin. She continued doing this til his face was clear of blood, leaving no sign of a fight, save for the bruises that were already starting to form on his face. There were also a few cuts, one being right at about his eyebrow, another on his jaw.

"You look terrible," she stated, looking him up and down.

"Thanks," he said dryly, an eyebrow raised in skepticism.

"I didn't mean it to be mean," she said honestly, reaching up and pulling off his head band and sunglasses.

He moved to stop her, but after a moment just decided to let her do as she pleased, watching her instead.

From there, she ran a hand through his hair, smoothing it out a bit so that it wasn't such a mess anymore. She found it to be quite soft to the touch, making her smile on the inside and slightly on the outside. Schuldig took notice of this too, but refrained from saying anything to her about it. She just continued to run her hand through it, fixing it for him and making him look more presentable.

"There, now you don't look as bad," she told him, moving to stand up, but he grabbed her wrist.

"What do you mean _as_ bad? I looked bad before?" he asked.

"No, I didn't mean it like that. You look perfect, I…I mean," her face went about two shades of red as she stopped herself, not noticing as he stood up behind her, until she felt his breath on the back of her neck

"So, you think I'm good looking then, do you?" he cooed huskily, wrapping an arm around her waist.

Her drew in a quick breath as he did this, holding it in. He was getting to her and apparently it was all too obvious. After all, every time he was around her, she felt safe. She could trust him and was comfortable around him.

"You know, I should take you to the hospital to get those cuts looked at," she said quietly, trying to move away, but Schuldig wouldn't allow it.

"I'm fine," he said, pulling her closer, his lips brushing her ear and making her even more red than before.

"Let's just go," she said quickly, finally managing to pull away.

_Too easy. Then again, it's still so fun and amusing. I could get used to this,_ he thought to himself, following along behind her.

**Ok everyone, that was chapter 13. I hope that everyone liked it? And as I'm sure you've noticed, yes, Schuldig deliberately allowed himself to be beaten up. Such a crazy German, huh? Anyway, please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE even if it's anonomous. I'd love to hear everyone's opinion's on this or how I could even make the story better or more interesting. Thanks everyone. Also, check out my PROFILE to see my other stories for FINAL FANTASY 7, FMA, ESCAFLOWNE, FRUITS BASKET, X-MEN (especially if you like GAMBIT) PRINCE OF TENNIS and MORE!**


	14. Cappuccino

**Redo Knight Hunter's**

**Chapter 14**

**Cappuccino**

"Stop that," Elizabeth exclaimed upon hearing the sound of Schuldig clicking his tongue.

Schuldig had starting clicking his tongue about half way through their walk to the hospital and at the moment it was getting on her nerves.

Click.

Click.

Click.

Cli-

Schuldig was stopped mid click as Elizabeth's hand slapped over his mouth, halting the noise that was being produced.

"I said stop it," she told him, before removing her hand.

Schuldig just looked down at her with an amused look on his face, the humor apparently not catching on, a secret joke that only he knew about.

"Besides, we're here," she finished, walking ahead of him and passed the hospital doors.

From there, she made her way up to the desk, Schuldig following behind her.

"Excuse me, I'm here to see Ms. Saki," Elizabeth said, glancing over her shoulder for a moment.

"Oh, you mean Rina?" the woman asked, her eyes skimming over one of the papers in front of her.

Elizabeth nodded her head in response, moving over a step as Schuldig came to stand next to her. The woman's eyes landed on Schuldig, taking in his features as she looked him up and down. Elizabeth caught onto this and gave the nurse a wary look.

"Excuse me," she coughed, catching the nurse's attention.

"Oh yes, I think she's on break right now," she said, her eyes veering back toward Schuldig.

"Could you call her down here?" Elizabeth asked in annoyance as she raised an eyebrow at the nurse.

After a minute of staring, the nurse finally complied, picking up a phone and calling Ms. Saki down.

It didn't take long before Elizabeth saw Rina walking toward them through the hallway, a questionable look on her face when she was the man standing next to her.

"Who's this?" Rina asked, her eyes flickering toward him for a short moment.

"Actually," she began, pulling him forward, "he's the reason I'm here," she told her, looking between the two of them.

Rina sighed as she turned around, walking back down the hall at a steady pace.

"Follow me then," she told them as she began leading them through the hospital.

After a few turns they entered a room, closing the door behind them as they faced the young woman.

"So, what happened to you?" Rina asked, a questionable look on her face once again as she looked at Schuldig.

The man stood there for a moment, shifting his weight to the other foot. Seeing as he wasn't going to say anything, Elizabeth decided to speak up for him instead.

"He got into a fight with someone," she explained, leaving out the part where the fight had been with Aya.

"Hm… Sit down," Rina told him, pointing to a chair in the room.

Schuldig complied by sitting down, undoing a couple of buttons on his shirt. Elizabeth sat down next to him as he handed her his trench coat, being careful not to strain his arm too much.

"So," Rina began as she brought a few things over, "is it just your face or is there more?" she asked, gripping his chin in her hand.

He grunted slightly as she tugged his head up, looking him over quickly. Taking in his facial reaction, she grabbed his shoulder, this earned her a muffled groan.

"Take off your shirt," she ordered, waiting for him to respond.

When he didn't comply, she put sharp pressure on the back of his shoulder blade. It didn't take long before she finally got him to remove his shirt. Both women were met with a surprise as they gazed at his shirtless torso. Yes, there were bruises that were starting to show from where Aya had hit him, but that wasn't exactly what caught Elizabeth's attention.

Schuldig watched her carefully as she placed a hand on his shoulder, turning in her seat and glancing over at his back. There was a deep purple almost black bruise located slightly above his mid back. The shape vaguely reminded her that of the end of a golf club.

"Schuldig?" she whispered, her fingertips brushing lightly over the bruise.

She felt his muscles shake under her touch causing her to frown.

_When did you get this? _she thought to herself, her eyes tracing over it.

He had to have been hit hard for it looked rather painful, the lightest of touch easily radiating pain through his body.

"Does this mean I get to slouch now?" Schuldig asked, a faint joke coming from his lips.

The girl beside him merely sighed, shaking her head lightly. She then lifted her hand from his shoulder and stood up, walking toward the door.

"Please fix him up Rina?" she asked politely before walking out and closing the door.

The two remaining occupants merely stared after her as she left, not truly knowing what to do. Schuldig knew that he had to play along though. He had to get her on his side, he had to win her over, he had to have her. All of this he knew, so he sat there as Rina fixed him up, waiting for his chance to leave.

15 minutes later, Rina turned around after patching up his eyebrow. When she turned back around though, Schuldig was gone, absolutely no trace of him left in the room.

T

_How long is this going to take?_

_I hope she's going to be okay…_

_Where did Dad go?_

_I hate hospitals._

_I wish someone would shut that kid up!_

These were the thoughts that Schuldig heard in his head as he walked down the hall and into the lobby. He continued looking around trying to catch sight of Elizabeth.

_What am I going to do?_

_I'm going to kill that boy!_

_They all think I'm suicidal…_

The last one made him stop as he stood in the middle of the lobby, his head turning to the left as he stared off toward a section of seats toward the far side of the wall. That's where he found her sitting, her head down, resting on her knees as she sat with her eyes closed. He used this opportunity to walk up to her, crouching down in front of her chair. He drummed his fingers on the side of her chair to get her attention, her eyes slowly raising up to meet his own.

"What's say we get out of here?" he asked, tilting his head to the side slightly, a strange sort of smile on his face.

She just looked out at his face, searching his silently calculating eyes for some sort of answer. There was something in his eyes that put her at ease, something that made her nod her head and take his hand, something that made her trust him. She took his hand and walked out with him, letting him wrap his arm around her shoulders. From there he led her down the busy street, keeping her close by his side.

_Look at those two. I wish I had a guy like that._

Schuldig smirked as he heard this woman, now taking even more confident steps forward. He leaned his head down a bit, resting it against Elizabeth's, once again taking in her wonderful scent. She didn't seem to notice though as the two of them walked toward a café.

Once inside, they sat down together in a booth, Schuldig sitting across from her. Moments later a waitress came over to greet them, a large smile on her face.

"How may I help the two of you today?" she asked kindly, holding a pad of paper and a pen in her hands.

"I'd like an espresso please," Schuldig said, before looking toward the young woman sitting across from him. "French Vanilla Cappuccino for her," he said finally, ordering for his friend.

The waitress gave a nod of the head, quickly writing everything down before walking away. After that, Elizabeth just stared at him, a curious look on her face.

"You look like a Cappuccino person," he said with a laugh. "So, other than the episode earlier and having to get me fixed up, how has your day been?" he asked, folding his arms in front of him on top of the table.

She remained quiet when he asked that question, her body freezing up. She had prayed so hard that such a question would never be asked, but apparently it did her little good.

"Something wrong?" he asked, giving her a curious look.

"I'm fine," she said, trying to make her lie convincing.

Before he could push anymore, the waitress came over, setting their drinks in front of them. Looking around, Schuldig sat there for a few moments, watching as Elizabeth sipped at her coffee. It was obvious that she wished to avoid the current discussion, but Schuldig wasn't done yet.

"It's obvious that there's something bothering you. Why not tell me what it is? Maybe I can help," he said, reaching over the table and placing his hand on top of her own.

She remained silent as they sat there, bits of steam rolling, spiraling upwards from their cups into the cool air of the café.

"This has to do with what you saw back there, doesn't it?" he asked as though just figuring out some big secret.

"Not really," she mumbled, bringing her cup up to her lips and taking a drink, the warm liquid rolling down the inside of her throat.

Suddenly, her cell phone started ringing, drawing her attention away from Schuldig. He watched her frown when she saw the caller ID, holding it in her hand with a sullen look on her face.

_Yohji…_ she thought to herself.

Quickly, Schuldig snatched it out of her hands, opening it and placing it to his ear.

"Hello," he said curtly, watching closely the look on Elizabeth's face.

"You!" Yohji yelled into the phone. "Why do you have her phone?" Yohji asked, demanding an answer from the German.

"No reason really. Don't worry though, I'm taking _very_ good care of her," Schuldig assured him, a faint smirk on his face.

Yohji didn't seem very happy with this though and made that fact very apparent to Schuldig.

"Listen to me, just stay away from her. She's not stable and you're the last thing that she needs with your instability," Yohji told him.

"Not stable you say? Now, why would you say that?" he asked innocently.

Schuldig watched out of the side of his eye as Elizabeth stiffened, her hands starting to shake as they curled around her drink, her heart itself pounding in her ears.

"Wait, you don't mean to tell me that she tried to _jump_ did she?" he asked, his voice filled with false curiosity as he already knew what the reason was.

At that, she quickly shot up out of her seat and ran out of the café at full speed, tears forming in her eyes. Everyone looked after her as she ran, confused at what they had just seen. A few of them were even worried about her as well. As a result, they looked toward Schuldig in question.

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid that I must go. Our little friend just ran off," Schuldig said offhandedly as though it were completely normal.

With that, Schuldig stood up, quickly downing the rest of his coffee. He then exited the establishment, leaving a tip behind on the table in the form of a few crumpled bills from his pocket.

_If I were her where would I go? _he thought to himself, making a left down the street in the direction that she had gone. He also probed the minds of the people around him, listening to their thoughts, searching to see if they had seen her.

Finding a few leads he followed them, walking down the street at a quick and thought out pace, his long legs carrying him to his destination.

_Where is she?_

He turned his head, searching his surroundings for the young girl. After further searching though, he came to Minato park, crying being heard in the distance. This was an entirely different section of the park than earlier, surrounded by an abundant amount of trees, easily hiding the sobbing female.

_It's coming from over here, _he thought to himself, walking in further, his hands tucked into his pockets.

From there, he followed the sound of her crying, the sad melody leading his way to her as he strode forward through the park. The trees kept him shaded as he continued further, the sunlight seeping in through various spaces in the leaves of the trees.

_There…_

Quietly, he knelt down behind her, draping his arms over her shoulders. She jumped at the sudden contact, trying to whirl around quickly, but he stopped her by pulling her back flush against his chest.

"W-what do you want?" she choked out as she tried to pull free.

Schuldig merely held her there, not allowing her to get loose as she struggled.

"You know the truth now, so what do you want!" she yelled, tears spilling from her eyes as she sat there with him.

"Hush now…" he whispered gently into her ear, letting his cheek rest against hers afterwards.

Her words went silent at this, though her tears never stopped as they met the ground. She couldn't help it, but to cry, knowing that he now knew the truth. He now knew what she had tried to do, he now knew just how unstable she really was, how crazy she was. So why would he want anything to do with her now?

"Why?" she whispered, her body shaking as she sobbed. "Why?" she repeated once more.

He merely let out a sigh as he sat with her, still holding her against him.

"I'm here… because I care," he told her softly, pressing his face into her hair for a moment.

She seemed to relax a bit as he did this, her body loosening up and falling against his more comfortably. To her it was still sad though, but the fact that he was still there, that gave her a bit of happiness. It gave her spirit something else to hold onto, to lift her up, to help her breathe more steadily.

"Schuldig…" she whispered, closing her eyes and leaning her head against him. "Why…why do you care? Why…why do you bother?" she whispered, her breath slowly becoming more steady as he sat there with her.

"Honestly…I don't really know for sure. Perhaps, it's want of love?" he said quietly, questioning himself while at the same time letting her hear what he knew she truly wanted to hear in the back of her mind.

"Want of…love," she whispered as though in a daze.

"I've never had anyone that truly cared about me. Whether I lived or died, no one truly ever cared, but you seem to," he said honestly, his words echoing in her ear.

"I do care..." she whispered, turning her head to look at him, her eyes opening and staring into his own.

"Do you?" he asked, gently taking hold of her face and bringing his close to hers.

Their eyes stared into one another's, their lips barely millimeters apart. Quietly, he brought his lips closer til they were nearly on top of hers, grazing them ever so lightly. This itself nearly sent her reeling over the edge to the point that her heart was pounding so hard that her chest actually started to hurt.

"Schuldig…" she breathed, her eyes becoming cloudy as she sat there.

His job was nearly finished now. All he had to do was tie up the loose ends and that would be the end of it, she would be his and those old bags would stay off his back for good. Eszett would be happy and so would he.

"Let's get you back home," he said, pulling her up with him as he stood, her back to his chest.

"Why can't I just stay here?" she whispered, not wanting to leave.

Schuldig merely shook his head, turning her around to face him, pulling her face toward his til their noses were touching.

"We must go," he told her, stroking her cheek softly with his thumb.

Letting out a sigh she nodded her head, allowing him to lead her out of the park, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. He held a smile on his face as he walked her back to the flower shop, soaking in all of the looks that he received as a result of escorting her home. A few times he actually had to glare at some guys, hearing the sound of their putrid thoughts inside his head. He would not tolerate such thoughts about his precious little kitten. No, he would shoot the bastards first and foremost before sitting around and tolerating such things to be brought forth into his mind.

What he found absolutely invigorating though was the looks that he received from the boys at the flower shop upon entering the building, his arm still wrapped around the girl's shoulders. He had to fight back a chuckle as he faced the four assassins that frolicked around during the day, passing themselves off as florists while at night they slew a far greater evil.

"Hello, _gentlemen_," Schuldig greeted, before kissing the top of Elizabeth's head.

He watched happily as Aya's anger began to flare, his hands curling into fists, while Yohji bit his tongue to hold in a few select words that he wished to say to the scheming German in front of him. Instead, Ken stepped forward, noticing the clouded expression on Elizabeth's face.

"Thank you for bringing her back," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her away from Schuldig quickly.

Immediately, there was a noticeable change her, her eyes slowly going back to normal as she stood there with Ken.

"Ken, take her upstairs," Yohji ordered, his eyes never leaving the German's tall form.

With a nod of his head, Ken led Elizabeth upstairs, his hand resting upon the small of her back as he guided her up them. Once the others were sure that Ken was fully upstairs, Yohji took a step forward, glaring down Schuldig.

"You…are a conniving bastard," Yohji growled.

Schuldig merely let out an exaggerated sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose before a smirk appeared curling onto his lips.

"Must you pumpkins always point out the obvious?" he laughed, brushing a loose strand of orange hair out of his face.

"I'm warning you for the last time…stay away from her," Aya told him, ready to throw a few punches if need be.

"Oh, I wish I could, I really do, but I'm afraid that I can't," he said, turning around and walking to the door, before turning around and finishing with, "You see, she's the one that won't be able to stay away from _me_," he replied.

With that, the young German male left the establishment, a smirk on his face as he walked down the street.

**Okay, I hope everyone liked this chapter? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me. I'm always excepting of constructive criticism and ideas. Also, check out my PROFILE for other stories for X-MEN, ESCAFLOWNE, FRUITS BASKET, FMA, FINAL FANTASY 7, LABYRINTH and MORE!**


	15. That's My Fiance!

**Redo Knight Hunter's**

**Chapter 15**

**That's My Fiancé!**

One week later, a young girl named Ouka was killed and Omi was beside himself. Someone that he loved had been taken away from him and he hadn't been able to stop or prevent it.

Elizabeth tried her best to help him through it, but it seemed to do her little good. Nothing that she said seemed to make a difference to her young friend. Although, she still insisted on accompanying him to Ouka's grave in order to pay her respects. She wasn't going to let him be alone in the afoul condition that he was in, he needed someone t o be there for him.

"So, this is it?" Elizabeth asked quietly, looking at the headstone in front of her.

_Ouka Takatori_

"Yeah…" Omi whispered sadly, his eyes starting to brim with tears.

Elizabeth watched this as she sat down next to him, placing a hand on his shoulder for support.

"Omi…I'm sure that Ouka wouldn't want you to be crying," she said, trying to get him to cheer up a bit.

This was something that she wasn't used to though, so it felt rather strange to her.

_He really loved her_, she thought to herself as she looked upon Omi. _So much love, only to be broken in the end…_ she thought sadly as she gazed up at the headstone, Ouka's image playing before her from her mind.

She could still see that smiling young girl in front of her, the one who so adamantly loved Omi. She could still hear the sound of her laugh echoing in the air around her, a musical melody all its own. She could still see her radiating face, glowing happily at thought of her dear Omi.

_Ouka…_

"Uncle Suichi," Omi exclaimed in surprise, bringing Elizabeth out of her thoughts.

At the sound of that, Elizabeth turned around to face the man that had shown himself to them. Her brows furrowed lightly as she looked upon him though.

"Mind if I join you?" the man asked Omi, looking over at Ouka's grave, before his eyes turned back to Omi.

The look in his eyes changed slightly though as they turned toward Elizabeth.

"Do I…know you?" Elizabeth asked curiously, noticing the strange familiarity in his face.

That short brown hair and those blue eyes of his seemed familiar to her somehow. It was as if she had seen him somewhere before, but she didn't know where. Her memory of him was a complete blur as she stared at him.

"I don't think so Miss," he told her shaking his head.

After a few moments she stood up, bowing her head to the two of them.

"I'll…be over there if you need me Omi. I…I have to say hi to someone," she said quietly, walking away from the two men in front of her.

She just felt awkward standing around in front of Omi and his uncle. She didn't think it right to stand there with them, instead, deciding to give them some alone time to talk. As she got closer away though, she felt someone watching her. Turning, she found it to be an older man wearing a suit. He looked like a business man, but it was obvious that he was there for a much more personal matter. She didn't know why he was staring at her, but she still bowed her head out of respect to him, turning back afterward toward her original destination to her parents grave.

"Who's that girl?" the man questioned himself quietly before turning back toward the boy in front of Ouka's grave.

T

A few days later, Elizabeth was walking through town, picking up various things for dinner. She had gone down to the market to pick up some things for everyone. She was happy to be doing something by herself again, for she was truly tired of being cooped up and not having any time to herself. Something that she had noticed though was the current news that had been shown on the TV lately. Bombings had been happening around the city. A group that was apparently called WeiB had been on the news channel recently claiming responsibility for them, a channel for which the guys always watched. Still, she didn't worry about it too much. No, she had her mind set on finishing up her shopping around the market places, trying to find the freshest produce to buy. At least that's what she told herself before she noticed the bag sitting in front of a little girl, the name WeiB spray painted on the front of it in red paint. At the sight of that she ran forward shouting.

T

"Schuldig," Crawford began, making the young German turn to him.

"What?" Schuldig asked, stretching his arms above his head.

"You might want to go check on that woman you're so fond of," he said, his eyes flicking over the screen that was now talking about the current bombs.

"No…!" Schuldig breathed, quickly running out of the room as fast as he could.

What he didn't know was that by the time that he got there it would already be too late, the damage would already be done.

T

"Get away from there!" Elizabeth yelled, running toward the little girl couched down on the ground, but it was too late.

Moments later the cloth bag exploded, the teddy bear in the child's hand flying to the ground a few feet away. Elizabeth herself was knocked unconscious by the blast, landing on the hard ground, her bags and their contents landing on the ground in a mess. The people themselves were in a panic, an uproar quickly coming to light.

People screamed while others called 911, calling for help for the people that had been hurt. They tried to help the best that they could. The little girl and her mother were unfortunately among the casualties, while Elizabeth laid among the injuried.

"Please, everyone, you need to move away from the scene," a police officer said, trying to make room for the incoming ambulances.

"Out of the way people!" another yelled.

"Excuse me sir, what happened here?" a man with long orange hair asked.

"There was another bomb," the officer told him in a tone suggesting that the man was stupid for even asking such a question.

At that, the man looked around, searching for someone from his spot outside of the yellow tape. When he saw her he let out a cry.

"My fiancé is in there!" he yelled, pointing to the woman that laid on the ground near where the bomb had exploded. "Please, I have to get her to a hospital!" he cried, trying to get through.

The officer grabbed a hold of him keeping him back.

"Please sir, we're trying to help everyone as fast as we can," he said.

The orange haired man just glared at him, hearing the faint thoughts floating around in the injured woman's head.

"She's hurt, please! She needs help!" he yelled, finally breaking through and running toward her.

He fell to his knees in front of her, carefully lifting up her head, and placing it in his lap.

"Elizabeth, wake up. Come on, you have to wake up," he said, stroking her cheek softly.

After about five minutes of this she slowly opened her eyes, her blurry gaze staring up at him.

"Schuldig…?" she whispered, trying to focus on his face.

This made him smile as he looked down at her, nodding his head. He was relieved to have her awake and responding to the sound of his voice. Although, from the thoughts in her head, he knew that she likely wouldn't be able to hold onto consciousness much longer. Regardless of that fact, he still fought to keep her awake.

"You have to stay awake, got that? Besides, you still owe me a date," he said, catching her attention.

"A date…?" she asked curiously. "Since when?"

"Since now," he told her, a slight grin on his face.

"And what if I say no…?" she asked, trying to keep her focus.

"Then I'd have to tell you that you'd be missing out on something wonderful," he said, turning his head toward the approaching medics. "It's definitely something that you don't want to miss," he told her, watching as her eyelids fought to stay open.

"Really now…you seem…so sure," she whispered, trying to concentrate on his fading image.

"Please move aside sir," one of the paramedics said, quickly placing down a stretcher and grabbing her away from him.

Schuldig glared at them for a moment before speaking, letting them know who he was.

"I'm her fiancé," he said, earning a response from Elizabeth.

"Schuldig…" she whimpered softly, trying to turn her head in the direction of his voice.

He caught the questioning tone behind her voice, thanking the fact that the paramedics didn't notice it. Making sure as not to raise suspicions, he took hold of her hand, comforting her.

"Everything's going to be alright sweetie, I promise," he cooed, satisfied that they seemed to believe his little act.

He followed the medics as they loaded her into an ambulance, quickly climbing up inside and sitting down next to her. The vehicle then departed, leaving him to sit and watch while the paramedics checked her over.

"Miss, I need you to stay awake if you can," the man said as he checked her eyes.

It was obvious that she couldn't focus on his finger, groaning and wincing when he shined a small pen light in her eyes.

_What's…going on…_

_My ears are...still…ringing…_

_My head…mmm…hurts so much…_

These were the thoughts that Schuldig heard weaving in and out of her unsteady mind. Piecing everything together, he realized how painfully obvious it was that she had a concussion.

_I'm going to have to get her away from all of this. Soon, she'll be all mine though, so very soon._

T

"Hey, have you guys seen Elizabeth?" Omi asked as he came downstairs. "She was supposed to be back with the food about a hour ago," he said, looking between his two friends.

"No, I haven't seen her Omi. I've been wondering the same thing actually. I'm pretty hungry too," Yohji said as he looked down at his watch.

"Maybe she got caught up at the market or something," Ken suggested.

"I'll try calling her," Yohji said with a sigh as he pulled his phone out, punching in the numbers.

The others watched as he stood there, phone pressed to his ear. After a couple minutes though he pulled it away, his brows slightly furrowed.

"She always picks up," Yohji said quietly.

A minute later though, his phone rang.

"Elizabeth?" he asked hopefully, but his face fell at the voice on the other end. "Persia…what…"

Omi watched as his hand started to shake, fingers curling into a fist at his side, his eyes watering slightly.

"Yohji, what's wrong?" Omi asked, walking toward his friend after he hung up.

"That was Persia," he said quietly as he pinched the bridge of his nose between his eyes. "Elizabeth…she's…she's in the hospital. There was another bombing and…she got caught in it," he said quietly, trying to keep his composure.

"What? No, no, it can't be!" Omi cried, before running forward and out the door.

"Omi, wait!" Ken called, but it was too late, he was already gone.

T

Schuldig sat there in a chair merely watching Elizabeth as she lay there on the hospital bed. They hadn't removed her clothes or anything, so he wouldn't have to worry about things until much later. He had to wait a few more minutes and then he could take flight. He'd leave that hospital behind with his little kitten in his arms.

"She seems to be stable now for the most part, but she's going to need rest," the doctor said as he looked over at Schuldig, bowing his head to the young man. "I'm terribly sorry about what happened to your fiancé though," he finished, before walking out of the room.

Schuldig sat there with a smirk on his face now. After another minute he stood up, a piece of paper in his hands as he stepped toward his dark haired angel.

"Time to go my sweet," he whispered into her ear before turning off the monitor.

From there he began removing all of the wires from her along with the IV that was in her arm. He smiled at the prospect of having her to himself after all of this was done and over with. He watched as she opened her eyes for a few moments, an almost content look in her eyes as he picked her up in his arms, feeling her curl into his hold.

_Time to go._

With that, he walked over to the window, opening it up quietly. He looked back at the room around him, before stepping out onto the ledge. He could feel the wind around him as it blew through his hair, whipping it behind him, his trench coat fanning out behind him as well. Then, without any further thoughts he jumped, leaving nothing behind save for a note on the bed.

**Okay everyone, that was the long awaited chapter 15. I hope that everyone liked it? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE? I always love hearing from people with their ideas and thoughts on my stories. Also, don't forget to check out my PROFILE for other stories that might interest you like: X-MEN (GAMBIT), LABYRINTH (JARETH), FRUITS BASKET (KYO), FMA (SCAR), ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THEIVES (WILL SCARLET), FINAL FANTASY 7 (VINCENT VALENTINE) and MORE!**


	16. Fragile Heart

**Redo Knight Hunter's**

**Chapter 16**

**Fragile Heart**

"Excuse me sir? I'm looking for a patient that was admitted earlier, one of the bombing victims, Elizabeth Mitsua," Omi said, standing at the front desk.

His breath came out in pants as he stood there, having run the whole way to the hospital without stop. He was just too worried about his friend to think about anything else at the moment.

"Elizabeth Mitsua?" the man questioned, skimming over a few papers. "Ah, yes, room 312," he said.

That was all that Omi needed before he ran off to the room, running all the way there. Once he was up on the right floor he smiled, quickly walking to the room number that he was given. His smile faded though when he opened the door. Nothing was there, nothing at all. He was about to run right back out until he saw a piece of paper laying on the bed.

~_We have her_

_Sie ist mir jetzt, K__ürbisse.~_

That was what the note read.

"No…no…no!" Omi cried as he held the note in his hands, his fingers curling around it, before he ran out of the room angrily.

T

"Omi, what's going on, you need to calm down," Yohji said into the phone.

"Yohji, she's gone. Someone took her," Omi told him. "I think it's a ploy to get us right where they want us. I have no doubt that the note is from one of the bombers," he spoke quickly.

"Okay, Omi, just get back here and we'll figure things out together," Yohji said, pushing off of the wall that he was leaning against.

T

"Okay, so you said that the doctor said that last time he checked on her was about 5:13, right?" Yohji asked as he sipped at his coffee.

"Yeah, and I got there at 5:42. The doctor also told me that there had been a man with her claiming to be her fiancé," Omi said, only to be interrupted by Ken.

"But she doesn't have a fiancé, the girl doesn't even have a boyfriend," Ken said, pointing out the obvious lie to his friends.

"Yes, I know. We know that, but the doctor's didn't. Due to the description that the doctor gave me, I have a pretty good idea of who it was," Omi told them.

"And?" Yohji questioned, his patience thinning a bit.

"I believe that it was Schuldig," Omi said quietly, watching Yohji's expression change to anger.

"You've got to be kidding me! That bastard has her?" Yohji exclaimed.

"Well, I think that he made it even more apparent with the note that he left for us to find," Omi's voice dropping slightly at the end as he pulled out the note.

Ken stepped forward and took the note from Omi's hand, looking it over for a moment.

"We have her?" he questioned for a moment, before looking at the rest of it. "What's the rest of this crap? Hell, what language is it even in?" he asked, turning to Omi.

"It's German. Roughly translated into: She is mine now, pumpkins," Omi said quietly, his hand curling slightly.

"Bastard," Ken growled, crumbling the note up in his hand and throwing it aside.

"So, what do we do now?" Yohji asked, looking between his two friends.

"We have to find her," Ken said, turning to Omi once more. "Is there any way that we you can figure out where they've taken her?" Ken asked.

"I should be able to figure it out, but it may take a day or two," Omi told him.

"Then get started, Elizabeth may not have that long," Ken said, before walking back upstairs to his room.

That let Omi and Yohji to themselves as they sat in the basement.

"Well, you might as well go find something to do Yohji," Omi told his friend. "This is going to take a while," he said honestly, watching Yohji nod and stand up, leaving the room a moment later. "Where's Aya when you need him?" Omi whispered as he began typing away at his computer.

T

Schuldig did as he was told. He took the girl from the hospital and brought her back to where he was staying. Unfortunately, he also knew what he would have to do the following night. He honestly did not want to cause this girl pain, no, that was one thing that he did not want to do.

"Do we really have to do this?" Schuldig asked his older comrade.

The man sitting in the armchair nodded his head, his calculating eyes trailing over toward the young woman that lay in Schuldig's arms.

"Injured or not, it must be done or would you rather deal with Eszett?" the man said coyly, knowing the answer already.

"Shut up…" Schuldig growled, turning his head away from the man.

He merely sat there on the couch, Elizabeth's head laying on his lap. He stared down at her, his hand running through her hair gently.

_There has to be another way… _Schuldig thought to himself.

He let out a sigh as he sat there closing his eyes, his left hand still buried in Elizabeth's hair, while his other rested against the side of his head.

"There is no other way Schuldig," the youngest spoke.

"Stay out of this Nagi, it has nothing to do with you," Schuldig told him tiredly.

"On the contrary, it does, for she will soon be one of us," Nagi said in a fairly monotone voice.

"I said…stay out of this Nagi," Schuldig repeated once more as he opened his eyes, sitting up a bit more.

From there he watched as his white haired partner came toward him, eyes set intently on Elizabeth.

"What is it Farfarello?" Schuldig asked.

His answer was met by Farfarello grabbing hold of his wrist, stopping him from continuing the ministrations to Elizabeth's hair. Schuldig watched closely as Farfarello brought up his other hand, bringing it carefully down onto Elizabeth's head.

"What are you doing?" Schuldig asked as Farfarello began petting the young woman's hair.

"You treat her like a small animal, why?" Farfarello asked, a sharpness to his voice as usual.

"She is like a kitten, fragile and new to the world," Schuldig told him, looking down at Elizabeth's sleeping face.

"If she is fragile…then I can break her," Farfarello said icily, his fingers curling tightly around Elizabeth's hair.

"No," Schuldig said firmly. "If anyone breaks her, then it will be me," he said quietly, an edge to his voice.

"But I want to break her," Farfarello said.

"No!" Schuldig hissed firmly, grabbing hold of the man's wrist tightly until he let go of her hair. "Now, go sit down and leave her alone," he told him, watching as he reluctantly walked away to stand near Crawford.

"You're growing attached Schuldig. I would be careful if I were you," Crawford warned calmly.

"You should mind your own business Crawford," Schuldig said slowly, his well trained eyes gliding toward the man.

"I just don't want to see you get hurt," Crawford said with false concern.

"Of course you don't," Schuldig said with distaste.

_She has such a fragile heart, _Crawford thought to himself, recalling a vision that he had had.

T

The following night, Omi sat at his computer, typing away. He almost had everything figured out as Ken and Yohji stood behind him looking over his shoulder.

"If this is where the bomb was set, and this is the distance the stolen helicopter traveled, and this is where the gasoline truck they used to refuel was abandoned, then their hideout should be…"

"Why would the build their hideout on an old abandoned landfill?" Ken asked, looking over Omi's shoulder at the computer.

"Looks like it might be another trap," Yohji said.

"It's all we got," Omi said quietly as Ken turned around.

"That's good enough for me," Ken told them, walking off.

"By the way, has anyone seen Aya around lately?" Yohji asked, thinking that Aya would want to join them.

"Aya's not coming back anymore," Omi said solemnly, his head cast down.

"What? But what about Elizabeth? He wouldn't leave just like that would he?" Yohji asked, not able to believe what he was hearing.

"I'm afraid so…" came Omi's voice.

T

"What's…going on?" Elizabeth whispered as she felt herself moving, her brain still fuzzy, her vision blurry.

The man that was carrying her just ignored her as he tossed her into a helicopter, her head bouncing around a bit as a result.

"What's going on?" she asked with a whine as she squirmed around a bit, her hands tied behind her back, and fear starting to cloud her mind.

"Shut her up," the man said to another one.

Elizabeth soon found herself gagged as she sat on the floor of the helicopter.

"Much better," the head man said happily as he smoked a cigar, blowing it into the young girls face.

He merely laughed as she started coughing, her nose being filled with the putrid smell.

"Alpha one to Base, Alpha one to Base, come in," the man spoke into a head piece as the helicopter took off.

"Base here. Any updates Alpha one?" the speaker asked.

"I'm bringing in the girl now, bait will be ready to set and the mice will be trapped."

_What's going on? This is ridiculous. Where am I? _Elizabeth thought to herself as she looked around.

From her spot she could see outside from the open door. They were flying above the city, progressing toward the warehouse district. After about ten minutes or so she finally decided to make some noise.

"Hmphma!"

"What was that?" the man asked, a grin on his face.

"Mmhmpham!" she yelled.

"Jim, take it off of her, I want to hear what the brat wants to say," the head man said.

"Bastard!" she screamed, only to receive a smack to the face.

"Shut up, you're giving me a headache," he said, turning back to the controls of the helicopter. "Alpha one to Base, Alpha one to Base, come in Base," he spoke into the mic.

"Base to Alpha one, Base to Alpha one, responding."

"Alpha one coming in for landing, make room. I repeat, coming in for landing, make room," the man said, the helicopter suddenly jerking to the side sending Elizabeth flying toward the open door.

She let out a yelp of panic, before she was roughly grabbed by the other man. A minute later they were grounded and Elizabeth was thrown to the ground in a heap. She then tried to crawl away, but made little headway with her hands tied behind her back.

"Where do you think that you're going?" one man asked smugly as he pressed his boot into her back.

She groaned as pressure was placed there, before she was rolled over onto her back, leaving her to look up at him. She just glared at the man before her, trying to squirm away, but it did her little good.

"Now, you're going to be a good like girl and cooperate, aren't you?" he said smugly.

"Like hell!" she exclaimed, spitting at his feet.

"Fine then, we'll do it your way," the man said as he kicked dirt up into her face, before grabbing her up by the back of her shirt.

She continued to squirm as he carried her, kicking her feet as much as possible. After about three minutes of this though, she was finally thrown down, before being placed up right. She then had her hands untied, only to have them tied back up again, only this time behind a pole of sorts.

"What do you want from me?" she asked, hanging her head for a moment as she tried to get her bearings and rid herself from the pounding in her head.

"Oh, nothing really, you're just the bait is all," one man said as he walked up to her, a hat on his head.

"Bait? For what?" she asked in confusion, already starting to see spots.

Last she remembered, she had been in the hospital. Schuldig was there as well, so where was he now? Had she been kidnapped? Was he hurt? So many questions were running through her head.

_Schuldig, where are you?_

"Why you're merely the bait for your friends," he said, pulling her head up to look at him.

She pulled her head away from him, glaring just as she had before. She was already starting to feel nauseous just sitting there, trying to fight it, but like usual it didn't do her much good. She groaned as she leaned forward, her hair hanging down in front of her before the bile came up her throat and out her mouth.

"Disgusting wretch!" the man screeched, moving away with his now filthy shoes.

All that Elizabeth could hear other than this was laughter, laughter from other men around her, that and the sound of guns loading. She didn't know what was going on, but she knew that it wasn't any good.

About half a hour later, Elizabeth heard the sound of gun fire, waking her from her dazed state.

"They're here!" one man shouted, removing the safety from his gun.

Elizabeth watched as others gathered, loading big guns onto the helicopters, others running toward the front line. At that point it had also started raining, the rain slowly beginning to soften the ground around her body as well as her clothing and hair, gradually coming down harder.

_What's going on? _she thought as she heard an explosion in the distance, the sound rattling her eardrums.

"Elizabeth!" she heard someone call out in the distance.

"Yohji…?" she whispered, blinking a few times through the rain.

"Elizabeth!" they called out again, only louder this time as they grew closer.

"Yohji!" she cried out, pulling against her binds, a hopeful smile on her face.

T

"Guys, I hear her," Yohji said as he continued to run forward, avoiding bullets that flew at him.

Omi had been right in guessing that they would have her there. Now, the only problem was getting her out safe and sound.

"There's no way we can possibly get to her without getting our head shot off!" Ken exclaimed, dodging another bullet. "This whole thing was a trap and we walked right into it!"

"We have to try," Yohji said. "For her sake!"

T

"Yohji!" Elizabeth cried once more, watching from her spot as her friends were being shot at.

Shortly after though, she let out a scream as Omi was shot, watching as he fell off and rolled down the side of a small hill.

"OMI!" she cried out, tears falling down her face.

Her friend had been shot right in front of her. For all she knew, he was now dead to the word.

"Omi…Omi…" she cried, her shoulders shaking terribly as she sat there in the rain.

She then heard shouts from a few men, lifting her head up to find Yohji driving toward her in one of the military cars, bullets flying at him from all direction.

"Yohji…" she whispered watching as he got closer, only to be shot down in the end.

She watched as the windshield cracked, the car swerving out of control and into a stack of pipes.

"No…No! Yohji! Yohji, get up! Please, get up!" Elizabeth screamed, tears continuing to spill from her eyes. "Yohji! Please! Yohji!" she cried.

"Idiots, they never had a chance," she heard one man laugh.

"S-s-shut up, you bastard! Shut up!" she screamed angrily, choking on her tears.

Shortly after that a missiles started going off in the direction of her friends. They were done for and she knew it. Her friends, they were gone. The one that had taken her in, made her laugh, made her smile, they were gone.

"No…" she whimpered, her breathing becoming ragged, her vision blinded by tears.

"That's it, they're dead," she heard someone say.

"No…no…no!" she cried.

"After this, there won't be anything left of them," another sneered.

That was her breaking point.

"NO!" she screamed out, her voice surrounded by waves of emotion.

As she sat there screaming, she felt energy explode inside of her, light surrounding her before it shot up into the sky like lightning. The thing itself spread out, destroying things around it, a small crater forming around where she sat. The mere sight of this sent fear into some of the soldiers that witnessed it, while anger filled others as they watched their own friends being killed as a result of the explosion. She couldn't stop it even if she wanted to, the sorrow too great to withhold. She felt destroyed inside and that's what she did to everything around her.

A minute later, the energy receded, leaving her surround by angry men with guns. Elizabeth barely even registered the sound she would have known as Aya's voice though in the distance as the energy receded, her head falling to the side as exhaustion took hold of her. The sound of gunshots still filled her head as she sat there, becoming a violent melody that followed her into unconsciousness.

**Okay, that was chapter 16. I do hope that everyone enjoyed it? I wrote this chapter so that it tied into one of the episodes in the anime. From here on out, things are going to be a little different between Elizabeth and our cunning German friend. Lets see what happens next, shall we? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me? I always love hearing from people. :) Thanks for reading everyone!**


	17. She's Mine

**Redo Knight Hunter's**

**Chapter 17**

**She's Mine**

As morning came, so too did Elizabeth's disappearance from the abandoned landfill. Her friends knew not where she had disappeared too, only hoping that she was safe where ever she was. Although, what they didn't know was that she was in the hands of another friend, one that was not their own.

T

Schuldig stood in a room high above the city, looking out at those below him. He had been with Elizabeth since the events of the previous night, vowing to no longer leave her in the hands of another, no matter what anyone said about it. The job had been done and now there was no reason for anyone else to touch her but him. Someone would die first before he let that happen. She was his and no one else's and he would keep it that way. She was his precious kätzchen, his fragile little angel, he would not let anyone break or shatter her.

"What do you intend to do with her now Schuldig?" Nagi asked as he looked over at his companion, before looking back toward the young woman that laid asleep on the couch adjacent to him.

"What do you mean?" he asked, turning his eyes from the window to his painfully astute young friend.

"It's exactly as I said Schuldig, what do you intend to do with her? After all, Eszett is now happy with her progress, we no longer have a deadline looming over our heads," he added.

"I still want to break her," Farfarello mumbled to himself as he leaned over the back of the couch, his head hovering over Elizabeth's form.

"You shall do no such thing Farfie. Don't forget, she's mine," Schuldig said, making a point in claiming what was his.

Unfortunately, that was the only way to get across to Farfarello. If you didn't want him messing with something of yours, you had to make a point in showing him that it was yours and only yours. You had to show him that it was not to be messed with. In this case, it was keeping Farfarello from tearing into Elizabeth.

"She is my kätzchen, no one else's," Schuldig said firmly as he walked over to the couch and sat down on it, pulling the sleeping woman into his arms and pressing his lips to her forehead. "Mine," he said, now acting like a small child claiming a toy.

Although, of course Elizabeth was far from a toy, but Farfarello didn't know that. Farfarello merely saw her as something else to torment and play with. In all reality, to him, that was all that she was good for at the moment. Although as if testing Schuldig's words, Farfarello ventured a hand forward in an attempt to touch the woman's hair. At this, Schuldig tried to bite his hand, an almost cocky look on his face. Farfarello merely smirked at him for it, before walking over toward the window.

For a moment, Schuldig felt Elizabeth's hand twitch, her fingers curling slightly around a bit of his coat. A faint smile slowly curled onto his lips as he watched this, nearly forgetting about the others in the room.

"How can you seem so content?" Nagi asked as he looked over at Schuldig, catching the smile on his face.

"You're too young to understand. Maybe I'll tell you when you're older," Schuldig said in a joking manner.

"I do believe our friend is falling in love," Crawford said, his comment obviously meant to mock the German.

Schuldig merely glared at him before closing his eyes, ridding himself of the man's image in the process. He was not going to sit idly by and let himself be mocked like that, but he also couldn't really go anywhere else. That left him sitting where he was with Elizabeth in his arms.

"Perhaps she will be my new sister," Nagi spoke quietly, looking over at the woman once more.

"Perhaps," Crawford nodded, taking it into consideration. "After all, she'll be spending a lot of time with us from here on out," he said, a smirk slowly forming on his face as he thought about it.

"Hey Nagi, you're good with animals, right?" Schuldig asked.

"I suppose, why?" he questioned, raising an eyebrow toward his friend.

"Do me a favor and catch me a cat," Schuldig said with a smirk.

T

"I really don't know why he's making _me_ do this when he can just do it himself," Nagi grumbled as he walked through the street avoiding the Special Forces Division.

He did not wish to deal with those idiots, for if they even attempted to go near him with intent to cause harm, then he would return that harm to them tenfold. He didn't care if it happened to be out in public or not, those men would not lay a single hand on him. He merely hoped that Mr. Takatori was done with his stupid tricks, but he honestly doubted it. That man never seemed to quite, much like an ignorant child in his opinion. These thoughts soon came to a close though as Nagi entered the flower shop, silently looking around for a moment.

"Hello, can I help you with something?" an old woman asked as she was seated in a chair in front of him.

"Yes, I'm looking for a cat," he said, noticing the cat that lay curled in the old woman's laps. "My friend is not feeling well and wishes for his company. Unfortunately, she can not come back home at this moment in time," he told her.

"Oh do you mean that nice young girl Elizabeth?" the woman asked kindly.

"Yes, Miss Elizabeth is not well. She asked me to come and retrieve her cat for her," he said, taking a step forward. "Might that be the one?" Nagi asked as he pointed to the Calico in her lap.

The old woman merely shook her head before pushing her glasses up slightly.

"No, I'm afraid not. I do believe that you are speaking of Ran," she said, looking around for a moment. "If you like, I can fetch him for you?" she offered.

"It would be greatly appreciated Madame," Nagi said with a slight bow.

"Such a nice young man," she spoke to herself as she went upstairs for a moment, leaving Nagi downstairs to look around at the flowers.

He took notice to many things as he stood there, mainly the flowers. He was filled with so many different scents as he stood there, the gentle fragrances filling his nose with its luscious perfumes.

_I wonder if Schuldig has ever stood here long enough to savor such fragrance? _Nagi thought to himself, before turning around to see the old woman coming down the stairs with what looked like a grey Siamese in her arms.

"This is the little fellow you've been looking for my boy," the woman said.

"Yes, that looks about right," Nagi confirmed as he walked over to her, his arms outstretched for the cat.

"I must warn you though, he only likes certain people. We've had a few problems every now and then because of particular men," the woman told him, allowing him to paint a picture in his mind.

"I'll keep that in mind Madame," he said as he took the cat from her.

Ran didn't seem to like this much at first, jumping down away from the boy and onto the floor.

"Well that's odd, I was certain there wouldn't be a problem," the woman thought out loud.

"I'm afraid that he likely smells someone else on my person," he informed the woman. "This person in particular doesn't seem to get along well with animals," he told her before kneeling down in front of Ran, stretching his hand out toward him. "Here, let's try this instead," he said, holding out a single piece of dark colored hair in his hand.

_That's right, _he thought as he watched Ran sniff it, analyzing it almost as he took in the smell, color, and length.

Ran then let out a meow as he walked forward, sitting down in front of Nagi peacefully.

"See, there's really nothing to it," Nagi said, before picking the slim cat up in his arms.

Ironically enough, Ran started to rub up against Nagi's face happily, purring a bit as well.

"I'm sorry Madame, but I must be going before problems arise back at home," Nagi said calmly as he bowed his head in respect.

"Please, tell Elizabeth that I hope she feels better? My name is Momoe by the way," Momoe said with a gentle smile.

"I will. Thank you Mrs. Momoe," Nagi said, before turning and walking out of the flower shop. "Now, I expect you to behave when I take you to your master," Nagi said, only receiving a meow in return.

T

When Nagi got back, Ran jumped off of his shoulder and ran over to his master, meowing feverishly to try and wake her. It did the cat little good though upon finding his master unable to respond. Ran seemed to glare at those around him as he turned and hissed at them, earning a low chuckle from Schuldig.

"Its been a while little cat," Schuldig said as he knelt down in front of him, only to get hissed at as a result. "Yes, I remember you too," he chuckled, hearing the thoughts running through Ran's mind.

_Stupid, moronic, annoying human! _Ran spat in his mind, not realizing that Schuldig could hear him.

"Such big words for such a _small_ creature," Schuldig cooed as he picked Ran up by the back of his neck, holding him up in front of him.

Due to Schuldig's ignorance he was clawed in the face, but the smirk he held never left. No, it remained in place, if not growing more than before.

_Fool. _Ran snickered as Schuldig put him down, though this time Schuldig took a seat on the couch, pulling Ran's master toward him.

The little cat didn't like this very much and hissed angrily at the man, watching as he stroked her hair softly. He then got an idea in his head and jumped off the couch, standing at Schuldig's feet. Moments later, the sound of liquid hitting Schuldig's shoes was heard as Ran peed on him.

"I don't think that the cat likes you very much," Nagi snickered, taking in Schuldig's now sour expression.

"And I think that if he's not careful, he'll soon find himself in a cage," Schuldig threatened, before a smirk appeared on his face. "In fact, there's one right over in the corner," he said as he stood back up, walking over to the corner of the room and grabbing said cage. "Now, are you going to be a good little kitty or am I going to have to throw you in the cage?" Schuldig asked, slowly drawing nearer with the cage.

At the sight of this, Ran backed up, quickly running and hiding under one of the armchair's. Schuldig couldn't help but to laugh watching the feline scurry away. After a few minutes of this though, he walked over to the window, looking outside at the people below him. Even up so high, Schuldig could still hear instructions being set out to the civilians over microphones. The Special Forces people were all over the place, herding the city's people like cattle.

"It's like a war out there," Schuldig said, turning his gaze away from the window and toward his companions.

"This is just a show of Mr. Takatori's loyalty," Crawford assured him.

"Yes, but…this is wrong. We didn't come here for this," Nagi said quietly as he voiced his opinion from his seat across the room.

"Well, why don't we see how strong Mr. Takatori's loyalty really is?" Schuldig suggested, itching to cause a bit of trouble.

Although, no sooner did those words leave his lips, soldiers came bursting into the room. The sudden intrusion put everyone on alert, including Farfarello who stepped forward with his weapon ready to strike. Crawford halted this though as he stood up from his chair, placing his hand out to the side to stop him. His eyes then turned to the men before him, including that of Mr. Takatori.

"What is this all about?" Crawford inquired, almost in a businesslike manner.

"It seems that I won't be needing your assistance any longer," Mr. Takatori expressed.

"What are you talking about?" Schuldig asked curtly.

"You are under the direct command of Eszett. You posed as body guards so that they could keep tabs on me, didn't you?" he accused, his voice rising a bit.

"If you knew all along, then what's the problem?" Crawford asked smoothly, his tone seeming to mock the man before him.

"Don't patronize me!" Mr. Takatori growled as his temper started to flare. "I don't need to be treated like a child anymore."

Drawing in a breath, he paused for a moment to calm himself, all eyes still on him as he stood before everyone in the room. For a moment, his eyes locked on to the girl sleeping on the couch, before turning them away and continuing with his speech.

"I've gained control over Japan as headquarters wished. You're all useless to me now. You may stay here, but just to observe," he said simply, watching the look on everyone's faces.

It was then that Schuldig leapt forward, irritation and a bit of anger on his face.

"What? You can't-" he started, his voice raising a bit only to be stopped by Crawford.

"Thank you Mr. Takatori," Crawford spoke in a level voice, showing that he did not wish to fight.

"I'm glad you understand," he said, turning to leave before he stopped half way. "Oh, and I'll be taking the girl as well," he added, a smug look on his face as he glanced back at the four men out of the side of his eye.

It was all too easy to see the change in the young German as these words were spoken. His muscles visibly tensed, his face going slightly red with anger. It was obvious that he was in a way attached to the young woman on the couch. By taking her away, it was just another way of getting back at them for spying on him. That, along with the fact that Mr. Takatori knew that she was somehow associated with WeiB and in his opinion, nothing more needed to be said if she was even in anyway linked to them. In his mind she needed to pay, just like the rest of WeiB.

"You can't do that!" Schuldig said, his eyes narrowing at the man that he had been playing bodyguard to for so long. "She's mine," he growled, slowly moving backwards to keep them away from her.

"Oh, but I'm afraid that's where you're wrong," Mr. Takatori said smugly as he turned to one of his men. "Grab her," he ordered, watching as his men stepped forward, slowly surrounding the young man.

"Don't even think about it," Schuldig warned as a few of the men came closer, guns raised and pointed at him.

"Schuldig, don't," Crawford warned, watching carefully as Schuldig fingered his handgun.

"She's mine," he hissed, his eyes narrowing slightly at Crawford.

"Be a good boy and hand her over," Takatori said with a smirk, his eyes following the boy's movements.

Schuldig's hands curled into fists upon hearing Mr. Takatori's words. They sent anger running through his veins .

"I said _don't_," came firm orders, halting Schuldig where he stood.

Takatori's men took advantage of this, one of them quickly stepping in to try and grab Elizabeth. The moment he did though, Ran came out of hiding and quickly jumped at the man, biting him on the hand. The man abruptly let out a yell, shaking his hand frantically, before pulling Ran off of him and throwing him at Schuldig angrily.

"Nasty little rat!" the man spat, stepping away as two other men came forward and picked Elizabeth up off of the couch.

The men made quick work of leaving the room, hurrying after Mr. Takatori and closing the door behind them. All Ran could do was sit in Schuldig's arms and growl, angry that his master had been taken away from him. Schuldig really wasn't much better at the moment either, a hard glare set on his face as he turned toward Crawford.

"Do not worry Schuldig, we will have her back in due time," Crawford assured him as he sat back down in his chair, his thoughts now organizing future plans.

**Okay, that was chapter 17. I hope that everyone enjoyed reading it? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE? I haven't really gotten much feedback on this story and I'd like to know what everyone thinks about it. Anyway, thanks for reading everyone and don't forget to check out my PROFILE for others stories that might possibly catch your interest. :)**


	18. Through Half Lidded Eyes

**Redo Knight Hunter's**

**Chapter 18**

**Through Half Lidded Eyes**

After Elizabeth was taken, Mr. Takatori made quick work in announcing her presence to the city. She was labeled a criminal and someone associated with WeiB. He even went as far as posting her picture in the media. He planned on using this to draw WeiB out of hiding, knowing full well that they would come to try and rescue the girl.

"I'm happy to say that one of the criminals has been apprehended. We now have her here in our custody. Elizabeth Mitsua is a known affiliate of WeiB and shall be treated as such, receiving equal punishment for the crimes committed," Mr. Takatori spoke to the news, said criminal sitting in the corner on the floor tied up.

After the report was done and the reporter left, he walked over to her, shoving her over a bit with his foot.

"Wake up," he said firmly, shoving her a bit more.

After a minute or two of this she began to stir, her eyes fluttering open, only to wince at the lights in the room. Although, it still left her with half lidded eyes, ones that were still clouded with the fatigue of sleep. She was still exhausted, only remaining half way awake, half way coherent to the man before her.

"That's better. Now, what to do with you?" he spoke out loud to himself as he paced the floor for a moment. "You know, you shall be severely punished for your participation in WeiB," he added, an evil smile forming on his lips.

_WeiB? What is he talking about? _Elizabeth thought to herself, looking around for a moment. _Great, now where am I? Why is it I keep waking up in random places that I don't know with a bunch of weird people! _she thought with distaste, turning her eyes toward Mr. Takatori.

"There's no use denying it, I know that you're one of them," he said.

_One of what? _She thought hazily as her world started to spin, making her sick to her stomach.

"You shall be put on trail with the rest of them. If you're lucky, you'll find yourself in a jail cell," Mr. Takatori chuckled.

T

They had been sitting there for at least three hours now, just sitting and thinking about what they were going to do, mainly Schuldig. The German was still angry at Mr. Takatori, that he had taken his little kitten way from him. He was even more annoyed when the TV had been turned on, revealing her picture on the news, along with the accusations that Mr. Takatori had placed on her. They weren't trying to make her existence known to the public. Although, of course Schuldig had his own reasons for not wanting that, but Mr. Takatori didn't seem to care one bit. Unfortunately, Schuldig knew what was out there waiting for her if she were discovered, dangers that she needn't face.

"They're here," Crawford announced as his eyes snapped open, standing up from his chair.

Schuldig followed after him, standing up from the couch that he'd been seated on with Farfarello. Nagi and Farfarello then followed suit, the soldiers' guns now pointed at the four of them in alarm.

"There's no cause for alarm, we don't even have any weapons," Schuldig said calmly as he raised his hand up in defense, at the same time hiding the smirk that was starting to tug at his lips.

A moment later, the lights went out in the room causing the soldiers to panic.

"What's going on?" one of men asked in a panic, his eyes searching around the room for the four occupants.

T

Smoke gradually filled the building, slipping underneath doors and into empty rooms. The building itself was virtually vacant save for soldiers and a few other occupants as it burned, gun shots ringing out and echoing through the halls, the smoke only raising higher through the building.

Eventually, the thick smoke made its way into another room, sending the only occupant inside into a fit of coughs as the smoke seeped its way into her lungs. It was as if she couldn't breathe, the air around her becoming thick, slowly suffocating her. This very same feeling is what pulled her from sleep, nearly smothering her thoughts as she lay there. She was barely even able to register what was happening around her.

_I can't…breathe, _she thought, rolling over as best she could in an attempt to rid herself of the smoke, but it did her little good as she let out another cough. _Where's Schuldig…when you…need him…?_

T

The soft thoughts nearly went unheard to Schuldig's mind as he walked down the halls, the crook of his arm shielding his nose and mouth from the smoke that filled his level of the building. The man could barely even see three feet in front of him as he continued his search, following the thoughts of the one that had been taken from him. At this point, he had already told the others to head out, not wanting to hold them up with his search.

As he continued forward, it wasn't long until the sound of coughing met his ears, mingling with his own. He had found her, he had found his precious little kitten. Although, when he went to open the door he found it to be locked, an irritated growl quickly erupting from his throat. The problem was soon solved though as he pulled his gun out, shooting the lock and pushing the door open.

He found her there, lying on the floor with her wrists and ankles bound, preventing her from going anywhere. She looked so exhausted, so weak of energy to his eyes, so small.

_K__ä__tzchen…_

Almost as though hearing this, she turned her eyes toward him tiredly, before another coughing fit hit her.

_Schuldig…? _She whimpered, though her mouth did not move,

Regardless, he still heard her, cutting her loose from her binds with one of Farfarello's far too many knives. He had taken it from him earlier that day after misbehaving, stating clearly that he wasn't going to get it back. Farfarello didn't like him very much for that, but Schuldig couldn't be bothered by it.

"I'm getting you out of here," he told her, carefully picking her up in his arms.

She was still so little, sometimes it actually scared him a little, but he knew he couldn't do much about it at the moment. No, he had to get her out of there before she ended up suffocating from the smoke.

Guns shots rang out through the halls as he moved forward with her, her arms wrapped weakly around his neck, her face buried in his shoulder in an attempt to keep from breathing in the smoke. He could still hear the sound of her coughs as he walked, the lack of proper air vacant from her lungs. She practically felt like she was dying as he carried her, fighting for the right to breathe.

_Hang on a little longer, _he nearly pleaded in his head, using the wall as a guide.

_I'll try…,_ she whispered, making him stop for a split second.

_You can hear me? _he asked, his brows furrowed slightly.

_Of course I can, _she thought to herself, nodding her head against him in answer, before letting out another fit of coughs.

At the moment, it felt like her lungs were on fire.

A few moments later, Schuldig heard the sound of Nagi's thoughts, instructing him on what to do.

"_Go to the western window on your floor. You'll have to shoot out the glass, bit that's where we'll be with the ladder," _Nagi told him.

He just nodded his head and continued forward, avoiding tripping on the bodies that lay on the floor. He continued to do this until he made his way over to the window, pulling out his gun and shooting out the glass.

Just as Nagi said, there was a ladder there, hanging feet away from the window. Unfortunately, they couldn't get the helicopter any closer to the building, so he'd have to jump if he wanted out. He had to jump if he wanted to save his precious kätzchen.

"Hang on," he breathed out, taking a few steps back.

Then, before either of them knew it, he ran forward. Schuldig flew right out the window, Elizabeth hanging onto him.

He just barely caught onto the last rung of the ladder, holding it tightly in his hand as he hung there, his other arm around Elizabeth's body to keep her from falling. From there, the smoke came flooding out of the building around them, clouding them from those below as the ladder was slowly pulled up.

"Here, take her," Schuldig said as they got to the top, allowing Crawford to reach out and take the young girl from him.

After that, Schuldig pulled himself up into the helicopter, sitting down and looking Elizabeth over. Her clothes were now ruined due to the smoke, her face caked with black splotches, and her breathing uneven.

"Here," Nagi said with a sigh, holding out an oxygen mask.

Taking it, Schuldig placed it over Elizabeth's mouth, giving her some much needed air. For a moment or two it seemed like her body tried to reject it, but that was quickly solved as it filled her lungs, soothing them with precious air.

Unfortunately, Schuldig wasn't much better. Like her, his clothes were also ruined due to smoke damage. His face was also stain from the smoke, black smudges all over his face and neck, even his hair was dirty and in need of cleaning. He was definitely going to take a nice long shower when he got the chance.

"Where did he have her?" Nagi asked in a level tone as he sat there in one of the seats.

"In a room tied up," Schuldig said with disgust and irritation.

He definitely detested Mr. Takatori. Then again, the man had taken away what was rightfully Schuldig's, so why wouldn't he hate him? The man was lucky that Crawford had stopped him, otherwise, there was a very good chance that Schuldig would have put a bullet in the man.

"I hope we're rid of that man soon," Schuldig said with distaste.

"Sooner than you might think Schuldig," Crawford mused as he looked out onto the building below them.

They all watched as Aya's sword pierced through Mr. Takatori's chest, before pulling it out and letting the man drop to the ground dead. The sight of this made Schuldig smirk in satisfaction, the corners of his lips tugging upward, before he turned his head to look down at the fragile woman before him. The only good thing was that the bastard was now out of their lives. The bad thing, something else would be waiting for them, something that wasn't exactly pleasant to deal with. Schuldig merely hoped that he'd be able to protect her from it and even that might be a bit of a stretch in itself.

_I _will_ protect you, _Schuldig whispered, running a hand gently through her hair.

The feeling seemed to comfort her, so he continued with it, watching as her breathing slowly evened out. Eventually, the calming touch of his hand put her to sleep, allowing her still tired mind to rest and relax. He merely hoped that when she woke up, that things would be a bit better, but he wouldn't truly know until later. All he really knew was how comfortable she always seemed to be around him. By reading her mind at times, he knew that she felt safe with him, possibly even safer than when with Aya. That in itself made him smirk heavily, the very idea making him want to laugh and rub it in Fujimiya's face.

"I wouldn't get too attached if I were you," Crawford warned dully from his seat up front.

Schuldig merely narrowed his eyes at the man, still running his fingers through the girl's hair.

"She's mine, I can do what I want," he told him, not really caring for Crawford's so called warnings.

To be honest, Brad could really care less what Schuldig did, but he still thought that he'd put it out there nonetheless.

"I still want to play with her," Farfarello said as he looked on at them, the side of his mouth twitching slightly as he imagined the fun that he could have with her.

If Farfarello had his way, he'd be fighting against her and cutting into her skin with his knife, savoring every moment of it.

"I told you before Farfie, the girl is mine and you will _not_ touch her," Schuldig said firmly, placing her head on his lap.

"I want to play with her," he grumbled, almost growling as he leered at Schuldig.

"No," Schuldig told him, narrowing his eyes a bit as he turned to look at his partner.

"I want to play with her," he said once more, growling this time.

"And I said no!" Schuldig told him, his voice nearly icy now as he glared at him.

There was no way in hell that Schuldig was going to even remotely consider letting Farfarello touch her. In fact, it would be a cold day in hell before he'd let such a thing happen. That followed him all the way to their base, where he carried her inside, keeping as far away from Farfarello as possible for the time being. He didn't need the guy pulling something while she was still asleep.

"Hm… what to do what to do," Schuldig mused aloud as he looked down the hallway tapping his foot.

There were plenty of places that he could put her. There was one of the empty ones in which he would have to drag in a spare bed, there was the couch in the living area, Nagi's room, his room, even the observation/occasional meeting room if he truly want too. At least with that one, she'd have something interesting to look at. It didn't take much though before he made up his mind, deciding to place her in his room with him so that he could watch her, keep an eye on her.

"My room it is then," he chuckled, walking forward and entering his room.

From there, he closed the door behind him, placing the precious cargo on his bed. As he looked down at her, realization hit him. Schuldig found that he couldn't remember the last time that a woman was lain out on his bed in front of him or even on his bed in general. Yeah, he would _flirt_ with women at times just for laughs, but in his line of work he was never actually able to take the time out and be with one. Not that he could actually keep one for any length of time given what he was and his job in general. Hell, if he ever had, Crawford would have made him get rid of her. So, what was Elizabeth then anyway, just part of Eszett's plan? Was she just another recruit for them to use and control?

"No…" he growled, gripping the posts at the end of his bed.

He'd be damned if he let her be used and just thrown away like thrash. He didn't care if Eszett did that to him, he got over that a long time ago, but he wasn't about ready to let them do such a thing to his little Kätzchen. They weren't going to be using her the way that they used him and everyone else.

_I won't do it,_ he thought to himself, stripping down out of his clothes and into his pajama pants.

He also took off his sunglasses and bandana, letting his hair fall down into his eyes like it usually would upon removing said bandana. He then climbed onto the bed, crawling up beside his companion and pulled her against him. He didn't know why, but he just felt like holding her. Whether it was for him or for her, he really didn't care, he just wanted to hold her against him.

T

A knock on the door is what woke Schuldig up, causing him to groan in annoyance.

"Go away…" he grumbled, burying his face in the crook of his kitten's neck.

Schuldig wasn't ready to wake up yet, in fact, far from it. He was happy in his dreams for once and he wanted to keep it that way. He was sadly disappoint and thoroughly annoyed though when Nagi came in and had the sheet pulled from him.

"I said go away," Schuldig groaned, curling closer to the only warmth on the bed.

"It's six o'clock, get up," Nagi instructed, standing at the door with his arms folded.

"You're annoying… go away," Schuldig mumbled, trying his best to annoy the adolescent.

Although, due to Schuldig's current enability to cooperate, he was thrown from the bed onto the floor.

"Damn you!" he cried out, sitting up and rubbing his back. "I'll give you and your annoying power exactly three seconds to get out of my room, before I kick your ass kid," Schuldig threatened, watching as Nagi took his good old time walking out of the room.

Schuldig just got up off of the floor and went over to the door, locking it for good measure.

"Little brat," he grumbled, before going back over to the bed and laying down.

The bed felt good against his now sore back, allowing him to relax even if only just for a bit longer. He was happy though to be laying back down next to his little kitten, wrapping his arms around her protectively.

Schuldig finally decided to get up after about another 15 minutes, stretching his arms in irritation. The only good thing was that it was time for his shower, so with that in mind, he stripped down to his birthday suit and entered the bathroom. With the bedroom door locked, he had no reason to worry about Farfarello coming in and bothering Elizabeth. Then again, he would know if he did, but that was beside the point.

T

When Elizabeth finally woke up, it was to the sound of running water nearby. She had no clue where she was. In fact, she barely remembered anything after the market place. All that she really remembered was shopping for food for the guys.

_Aya… _she thought to herself, the others coming to mind a moment later.

She had no idea what they were going through right now, now that she was missing. Her thoughts then went to Schuldig, her young German friend. She wondered where he was at. Although, right as those thoughts entered her head, the sound of the water stopped. She could hear something like a shower curtain moving and then the faint sound of wet footstep nearly sliding on a smooth surface. The sound of a door opening was heard right after, alerting her to the person's presence.

"You're awake," Schuldig mused, walking over toward the bed, a towel wrapped around his waist.

She just turned her head to look at him, opening her eyes tiredly and gazing at him. She didn't even seem to take in the fact that he was only wearing a towel, instead, keeping her eyes trained upon his crystal blue orbs.

"…" she opened her mouth, but nothing came out, a look of confusion crossing her feature.

She tried once more, but got the same result. She then brought her hand up to her throat, touching it tentatively, before her eyes started to water. She was unable to speak, unable to talk and use her voice. This in itself scared her, causing her hand to shake.

_I…I can't speak, _she thought.

"But I can still hear you," Schuldig said gently, making sure that the towel was secured tightly around his waist, before sitting down on the side of the bed.

_How? _she thought, looking up at him.

"I think it's about time that I told you the truth about me," Schuldig told her, wiping the tears from her eyes with his thumb. "I can read peoples thoughts," he started, pressing his forehead lightly to hers as he stared into her eyes.

_Just like you can now, _he finished, watching as her eyes grew slightly wide.

_I could…hear you,_ she whispered, her hand shaking slightly.

Seeing this, Schuldig took hold of her hand, holding it gently in his as he tried to comfort her. It was so obvious that she was torn by this, unsure of what to do or how to take it.

_What happened? _she whispered, trying to keep her breathing under control.

"What do you remember?" he asked, momentarily avoiding her question.

_I…the market…and the bomb… I tried to stop her, but… _she couldn't even finish as tears started to fall.

"She's gone," Schuldig said quietly, placing his other hand on her shoulder. "What else do you remember?" he pressed, raising his hand from her shoulder to her cheek.

She looked into his eyes, her vision slightly clouded.

_I…I don't… _she sat there clutching her head, trying to remember the rest.

She knew that he must have been there at some point. There was that nagging feeling in the back of her head telling her that he had been there with her, but she couldn't remember.

Seeing this, Schuldig took his chance and leaned forward, pressing his lips to hers. He knew that it was something that she needed, it was also something that he needed, so he took his chance. Some would say that he was trying to take advantage of her, but he wasn't, far from it actually. In his attempt, he was trying to calm her and he was doing just that. The moment his lips hit hers, her mind went blank and her worries disappeared. Just as he had thought, there was something about him that calmed her and put her at ease, and his actions proved that with their results.

"Now, shh…" he whispered, placing a finger to her lips as he stood up, stroking her cheek for a moment before going over to his dresser and pulling a few things out.

She just sat there, a misty looking in her eyes, before blinking a few times. Oddly enough, she now felt calm, unnerved by what was going on. She tried to speak again after a moment, her mouth moving on instinct, but nothing came out. From her place on the bed, she couldn't see the faint smirk on his face, knowing that he did something that Aya never could do. He then went back into the bathroom, closing the door behind him as he went to change.

_Schuldig…?_ she whispered, carefully getting up off of the bed and walking over to the bathroom door.

She stood there for a moment, her hands curled around the door frame, watching as the door opened again after a minute. Schuldig stood there in front of her, dressed in a pair of cream colored pants, but no shirt. His bangs were still in his face just as before, his blue eyes shining through them easily. Those eyes of his nearly put her in a trance, seeming to read straight into her soul.

"Come here," he said, making a come hither gesture with his finger.

She obeyed, taking those two or three step forward and into his arms. From there, he took hold of her hands, putting them around his neck. This brought them closer together as they stood there, reminding her of the night at the club when he had helped her, pulling her away from those men.

"Familiar, isn't it?" he asked.

She nodded her head in response, staring up at him like a child. She looked so innocent as she stood there with him, the blackness still sticking to her face; a child that he had rescued.

"Close your eyes for me," he instructed.

She did as she was told, feeling him place his hands on her waist. She then felt his breath on her ear as he leaned forward.

"Now, imagine our time back at the club that night," he told her silkily, helping her to calm her mind.

She stood there with him, eyes closed, heart beating. She concentrated on her breathing as she emptied her mind, picturing the night at the club, music slowly filling her head. Once she did this, she felt him move, taking her with him as he started to sway from side to side. She just continued to picture the lights around them, the music flowing smoothly around them like water. To her, it was like floating in a dream as he moved her slowly around the room with him, keeping her close. He was calming her frazzled mind while keeping her happy at the same time.

There moment was soon ruined though when the door was knocked in, startling both of them and leaving Elizabeth clinging to Schuldig in fear.

"Damn it, Farfarello, it's called knocking," Schuldig yelled in annoyance, glaring at the man while he continued to hold Elizabeth close to him.

"They said come get you," Farfarello said lowly, making Elizabeth cringe at the sound.

_Schuldig… _Elizabeth whimpered, trying her best to hide against him as Farfarello leered at her, a twisted grin forming on his face.

"Get out," Schuldig ordered, keeping his arms around his little kitten.

Farfarello merely grumbled as he walked out, leaving the door lying on the ground. Schuldig merely picked it up and chucked it out into the hallway in irritation, turning back to Elizabeth afterward.

"We should get you cleaned up," he said with a sigh, pulling her gently into the bathroom and having her set on the edge of the tub as he grabbed a washcloth. "Here," he cooed, gently wiping her cheek with the damp cloth, watching as the smudge slowly became nothing.

He continued with this, calmly cleaning her face of the blackness, one hand always on her cheek while the other cleaned. She seemed at peace with this, enjoying the feeling of his gentle touch. Seeing this, his thoughts went back to Crawford's words.

_Get close to her…_

_Get her to trust you…_

_Watch over her…_

_Now, get her to fall in love with you…Schuldig._

He kept these thoughts concealed from her, not wanting her to hear them. If she were to ever hear them or find out about them, it would ruin everything. It would ruin their plans, his plans, and even…even what they had together. He didn't want to risk losing that, even though he knew that whatever it was shouldn't even exist. Sometimes, he still believed that he was not only incapable of love, but incapable of receiving and holding onto it as well. He didn't want to lose it, it felt too good to lose.

"We're going to need to get you some new clothes," he mused aloud, closing and locking the bathroom door as he heard someone walking down the hallway.

The last thing that Schuldig needed was someone walking in and seeing him cleaning her up in the manner that he was doing. Then again, he knew that Crawford would be all for it, thinking that it was merely part of the plan. Only problem was, it wasn't part of the plan, it was him.

Once he was done with her face, he cleaned her neck, then her hands. Now, all that was left was her hair. He knew that he would likely have to get her something that smelled a bit more feminine, but his shampoo and conditioner would have to work for the time being. She didn't seem to mind though as he placed her head over the sink, turning the water on and rinsing her hair.

The last time that someone else had washed her hair for her, she had still been in the hospital, so this was a bit new to her. Then again, she still didn't mind though. She was comfortable with him, trusted him, perhaps was even falling in love with him. She just wasn't sure on everything that passed through her mind at times. The only thing that she was sure of, was the fact that she truly enjoyed his company, feeling safe with him.

**Okay everyone, that was chapter 18. I do hope that everyone enjoyed it? Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE with your thoughts and ideas on this story. I like hearing from people. Thanks everyone and happy reading. Also, check out my PROFILE for other stories that you might like. X-MEN (Gambit), FINAL FANTASY 7 (Vincent ValentineIChaosISephiroth), ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THEIVES (Will Scarlet), FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST (Scar), ESCAFLOWNE (Folken), FRUITS BASKET (Kyo) and MORE!**


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